Operators hope for lift of drill moratorium

Operators hope for lift of drill moratorium    The Offshore Marine Service Association (OMSA), whose U.S.-flag vessels members work in the offshore energy sector, praised U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman’s ruling Tuesday to remove the Obama administration's six-month moratorium on offshore drilling.
   “Judge Feldman recognized the potential for the ban to cause significant economic harm to our country and the Gulf Coast, not to mention the damage it would do to America's maritime industry,” said OMSA President Ken Wells, in a statement.
   'Our members are not the drilling companies or the oil companies.    They are the companies that carry supplies and people to and from the offshore energy projects. Even though they had nothing to do with the BP accident, it was clear that they would bear the brunt of the negative consequences of the ban. While this is clearly not the end of the legal process, it is extremely good news and gives our industry hope that we will survive this government action,' Wells said.
   The moratorium's impact has started to be felt by the OMSA members. In the past week, the association's members reported that more than 40 vessels have lost work because of the deepwater moratorium and the de facto moratorium that was placed on shallow-water drilling.
   Additionally, plans to build new vessels in U.S. shipyards have largely been cancelled, raising the potential for thousands of layoffs in that sector. 'The impact is spreading nationally as vessel companies cancel millions of dollars of engines, electronics equipment and other capital purchases,' Wells said.
   'We need to make sure drilling is done safely, but we also need to make sure we don't stop drilling altogether and leave our country at the whim of foreign oil producing countries,' he added. 'This ruling gives us hope that we can go back to work.'
   However, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar responded Tuesday evening to the federal judge's action to block the moratorium on deepwater drilling by stating he will issue a new order against drilling. ' Chris Gillis