Independent US oil, gas drillers fight higher taxes, leasing ban

The White House and Democrats in Congress are looking at a number of ways to increase taxes and federal revenues from the oil and gas industry as part of their climate and clean energy agenda. They're looking at higher royalty rates on federal lands and eliminating deductions like intangible drilling costs and percentage depletion. We spoke with Dan Naatz, executive vice president for the Independent Petroleum Association of America, about how his group is engaging on this issue. We also talked about where he sees the Interior Department's leasing ban headed and the impact of Congress restoring Obama-era methane emissions. S&P Global Platts Analytics predicts the leasing moratorium eventually could lower US onshore production by more than 1 million b/d in the next five years, while risks to offshore production will not show up for at least 10 years. Total US oil production is projected to grow by at least 200,000 b/d in 2021 and by 1 million b/d in 2022, but it won't reach its pre-pandemic peak of nearly 13 million b/d until at least 2023.