Mr. Erik Milito - The House Committee on Natural Resources ...

January 2012
Historically, the relationship between the number of leases in effect and future oil production in the western states shows
a strong positive correlation: the more leases that are available, the greater the domestic oil production that occurs on
federal lands. As Figure 5 shows, since 1984, oil production from federal lands has consistently been at its highest levels
when the number of total drilling leases available was at its highest. <strong>The</strong> reverse has also been true through the years –
fewer available leases have resulted in a curtailment of oil production from the nation’s federal lands.
Figure 5:
Relationship Between Leases in Effect and Oil Production
*Western States (Includes Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Utah and Wyoming)
Source: BLM Oil & Gas Statistics (2010)
Recently released BLM figures for leases issued for 2011 were not available at the time this analysis was undertaken. However if used,
they would most likely not have significantly impacted the model results of the relationship between leases and production.
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