Sources: Biden Admin Will Approve Willow Project Today

Reuters reporting that the Biden administration will approve the huge USD$8 billion Alaskan oil "Willow" project today after lobbying from Alaskan lawmakers and oil and gas groups.

• The project has the potential to produce around 600 million barrels of crude oil over 30 years.
• New York Times: “According to the two people familiar with the deliberations, the administration has concluded that it doesn’t have the legal authority to deny permits to [operator] ConocoPhillips.”
• The administration will reportedly issue a number of restrictions on oil leasing in the Arctic and Alaska’s North Slope to offset political fallout from the approval of the project, which was blocked by Biden in 2021 on environmental grounds.
• Bloomberg: “Environmental activists who helped put Biden in the White House insisted approval would be a betrayal of his campaign pledges.”
• Frank Macchiarola, senior vice president of policy at the American Petroleum Institute: “In the current energy crisis, the Biden administration should be focused on strengthening U.S. energy security and standing with the working families of Alaska by supporting the responsible development of federal lands and waters — not acting to restrict it.”