OGP responds to proposal for EU safety
The International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (OGP) has asked the European Commission to look to legislation in the form of a directive that would allow member states to adjust to local circumstances and align with existing regulatory frameworks.
IADC has been involved with development of OGP’s position paper, which was delivered to the commission’s Directorate-General for Energy in January.
The paper notes that the offshore E&P industry has developed recommendations for improving well incident prevention, intervention and response capability over the past couple of years. This work has already achieved better engineering design and well operations management, improved capping devices, and enhanced oil spill preparedness and capability.
86 groups object trade agency reorganization
Eighty-six groups representing the business and agricultural communities, including IADC, jointly wrote to US President Barack Obama expressing concerns over a proposal to merge the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) with five other agencies into a single cabinet-level department.
By balancing the interests of various constituencies and agencies, the USTR provides assurance to stakeholders “that no one has a thumb on the scale,” the letter stated. As a separate entity, the USTR is able to act responsively to negotiate, implement and enforce US trade objectives. The USTR is actively involved in growing US exports, eliminating foreign market barriers and improving the overall competitiveness of US farm and manufactured goods and services in the global economy.
IADC executive VP – government affairs Brian Petty, in his capacity as ITAC2 chairman, counsels the US Trade Representative and the US Secretary of Commerce on international trade issues.
Industry comments on draft PEIS for OCS
Providing comments to be considered before the Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (DPEIS) is finalized for the proposed 2012-2017 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) leasing program, seven industry groups, including IADC, reiterated disappointment in the limited scope of the DPEIS. However, the groups also expressed support for the work of the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) in preparing for the DPEIS.
Comments were submitted in January to James Bennett, BOEM Division of Environmental Assessment chief. They pointed to the missed opportunity to increase access to additional OCS energy resources in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, offshore Alaska and on the US East Coast, especially offshore Virginia. However, with as many as 15 lease sales among the six OCS planning areas in the proposed action plan, industry believes the DPEIS includes an acceptable range of offshore access.
