DOI Eases Drilling Rules to Boost Offshore Oil Production

The development is expected to result in more than 100,000 barrels per day of extra production.

An aerial view of the Valero Houston refinery in Houston, Texas, on Aug. 28, 2023. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

The Department of the Interior (DOI) relaxed a drilling rule that was projected to increase oil production in the Gulf of America and lower costs, the agency said in an April 24 statement.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has implemented new parameters for “downhole commingling” in the Paleogene (Wilcox) oil and gas reservoirs in the Gulf of America.