Washington, DC – On June 6, Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, released the below statement following last month’s onshore oil and gas lease sale held by the U.S. Department of the Interior that brought in $78,844,369 on 37 parcels — the highest earning onshore lease sale since 2019. This is the first onshore oil and gas lease sale since the enactment of the Inflation Reduction Act, which required that significant federal oil and gas lease sales take place and be awarded prior to wind and solar rights-of-way being awarded. While this lease sale is significant, additional lease sales of sufficient size will be needed to meet Inflation Reduction Act requirements if renewable rights-of-way are to be issued. Chairman Manchin included this provision in the Inflation Reduction Act in response to the Administration’s continued delays or cancellations of oil and gas lease sales on federal lands and in federal waters.
“Oil and gas production on federal lands and in federal waters is essential to our nation’s energy and national security, and last month’s onshore lease sale is proof that the fossil fuel industry is ready and willing to continue helping America maintain our status as a global energy leader. America is blessed with an ocean of energy under our feet, and our oil and natural gas can be produced cleaner than virtually anywhere else in the world. The requirements I included in the Inflation Reduction Act ensure that the United States will not prematurely abandon these energy sources that both we and our allies rely on. Experts from across the energy sector have testified before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that fossil fuels will be part of our energy mix for decades to come and the laws passed by Congress make clear that America has an all-of-the-above energy policy. I am encouraged by this indication that the Administration is following suit and recognizing that this lease sale and those that follow are necessary to maintain American energy security.”
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