California | January 2020
Field Overview
California, with both onshore and offshore oil production, has been supplying the U.S. with petroleum products since the 19th century. Operations are primarily focused around Kern County, the LA Basin, and the San Joaquin Valley, with the Midway-Sunset oil field in Kern County being the state’s largest.
State Drilling Statistics
Active Drilling Rigs in Basin- 14
Total Rigs in California- 14
Total Rigs in United States- 790
Total U.S. Rigs down 24% YTD
Financial & Economic Updates
Study envisions CO2 reductions without reducing California oil production
- A new study out of Lawrence Livermore National Lab concludes the state can bury or offset 125 megatons per year of carbon dioxide by 2045 through land management practices, waste material processing, capturing atmospheric CO2 and storing the gas deep underground.
- Two ambitious “carbon sequestration” projects, one of which was abandoned in 2016 for various reasons, proposed permanently burying the gas in the county’s western reaches. Both initiatives touted the dual value of sequestering CO2 and using it to promote local oil production.
- Authors at Lawrence Livermore wrote in a summary of their report, “Getting to Neutral: Options for Negative Carbon Emissions in California,” that the entire effort would cost less than $10 billion per year, or less than half of 1 percent of the state’s economic output.
State Highlights
Another top California oil regulator will step down amid continued probes
- Jason Marshall, one of California’s top oil and gas regulators, is stepping down. Marshall will resign in mid-February from his post as chief deputy director of the Department of Conservation. In that role, he has overseen the beleaguered Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) as well as the mining division and other key department functions.
- Twice in his career, Marshall was also tapped by two governors to step in as acting director of DOGGR, now known as CalGEM.
- In July, Newsom fired oil and gas supervisor Ken Harris and named Marshall as acting supervisor. Harris was ousted a day after The Desert Sun reported that the issuance of new fracking permits had doubled since Newsom took office compared to the pace under theformer governor, Jerry Brown. The Sun also reported that other senior supervisors held personal investments in oil companies the agency regulates.
Bill That Would Create Larger Buffers Between Oil and Gas Wells and Public Places Passes Assembly
- More than one year since it was introduced, Assembly Bill 345, which would establish a minimum setback distance between public facilities with children and oil and gas wells, was passed in the Assembly.
- Under AB 345, authored by Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance), the Natural Resources Agency would have until July of 2022 to adopt public health and safety regulations covering nearby oil and gas extraction areas. It would specifically urge oil and gas facilities to be located a distance of 2,500 feet away from schools, playgrounds, and other public places with children. A minimum setback distance, as well as new protective measures such as updated fencing, would also be required around hospitals, residences, and other buildings where there are health and safety risks.
Refining
California Gas Production
California Oil Production
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