The development is expected to result in more than 100,000 barrels per day of extra production.
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.
Downhole commingling is the process of producing oil from several reservoirs that have varying pressure levels by using only a single wellbore, a type of borehole drilled to extract oil.
Under the new policy, the BSEE is “expanding the allowable pressure differential from 200 psi to 1500 psi,” a nearly eightfold increase. This will allow companies to produce oil from multiple reservoirs with pressure differences.
“This change, the result of extensive technical consultation with offshore industry leaders, could increase production output by roughly 10 percent, which would translate into over 100,000 barrels per day production increase over the next ten years,” the department said.
The DOI said additional gains are possible and would depend on further data provided by operators working in the Wilcox reservoirs.
Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum called the decision to raise the pressure differential a “monumental milestone in achieving American Energy Dominance.”
“We’re delivering more American energy, more efficiently, and with fewer regulatory roadblocks. That means lower costs, more jobs, and greater security for American families and businesses, as President Trump promised. Through smart collaboration and decisive leadership, we’re showing what’s possible.”
According to the DOI, the update follows President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order “Unleashing American Energy.”
The order highlighted America’s abundant natural resources, the development of which has been impeded in recent years due to “burdensome and ideologically motivated regulations.”
Trump focused on several measures to boost the country’s energy output, including encouraging energy production on federal lands and waters.
Commenting on the new commingling policy, the Interior Department cited a 2023 study from the University of Texas, which said that a commingled production scheme could provide 61 percent more oil recovery over 30 years and 21 percent more recovery over 50 years.
