Yesterday, IPANM attended the BLM stakeholder meeting for revisions to OnShore Orders #3, #4 and #5. The revisions are very technical in nature and will severely impact ANY COMPANY THAT OPERATES ON FEDERAL LANDS. Comments are due by December 14th. IPANM has already commented on OSO #3. We will update those comments and will prepare comments for OSO#4 and #5. We will also sign on to those prepared by Western Energy Alliance and IPAA. Comments are due December 14th.
Due to multiple requests from IPANM as well as others, the BLM has established a call in line for the meeting tomorrow in Oklahoma city. From the BLM, I received the following notice:
“Individuals who want to take part via telephone may call 1-800-857-2889, and when prompted, enter the passcode 4111819. The phone number and passcode is the same for both meetings. — The Bureau of Land Management”
The meetings will be:
• Dec. 3 at 1:00 p.m. CST. It is being held at the Renaissance Oklahoma City Convention Center Hotel, 10 N Broadway Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK 73102.
• Dec. 8 at 1:00 p.m. MST. This meeting is taking place at the Astoria Hotel and Event Center, 363 15th St W., Dickinson, ND 58601.
Copies of the Powerpoint presentations about the proposed regulations are available at . Also posted on the site are copies of the proposed regulations.
Order 3 establishes standards to ensure that oil and gas are properly and securely handled to prevent theft and loss and to enable accurate measurement and production accountability. Orders 4 and 5 establish minimum standards for the accurate measurement of all oil and gas, respectively. Like the existing orders, the purpose of the proposed rules is to ensure that the oil and gas produced from Federal and Indian leases (except Osage Tribe) are accurately measured and accounted for, so that the proper royalties due are paid. Royalties are split between the Federal treasury and the State where the production occurs. Indian tribes and individual Indian allotment owners keep 100 percent of the royalties collected from leases on their lands.
These rulemakings are underway because Onshore Orders 3, 4, and 5 were put in place in 1989 and have not been updated since. As a result, they do not reflect modern measurement techniques. The requirements contained in the proposed rules reflect advances in technology, as well as critical updates in industry standards and practices. These proposals also respond directly to concerns from the Government Accountability Office, the Department of the Interior’s Office of Inspector General, and the Secretary’s Subcommittee on Royalty Management.
In addition to accepting comments at the meetings, comments are also being accepted through December 14 by any of the following means:
• Mail to U.S. Department of the Interior, Director (630), Bureau of Land Management, Mail Stop 2134LM, 1849 C Street, NW, Washington, DC 20240,
o Attention: 1004-AE15 (for Site Security),
o 1004-AE16 (for Oil Measurement), or
o 1004-AE17 (for Gas Measurement), or
• Via the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions at this website.
