mexico hydrocarbons politics - hss 2013

8/9/2019 Mexico Hydrocarbons Politics - HSS 2013

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Neg Mexican THA Cards


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Links to politics

The plan prioritizes drilling over protecting investors,improving rig safety, respecting coastal communities, and

conducting appropriate environmental revie!an Hollen "#$% (Maryland Democratic Congressman, Democrat, “THE OUTERCONTINENTAL HEL! TRAN"OUNDAR# H#DROCAR"ON A$REEMENTAUTHORI%ATION ACT (HR &'&) AND THE O!!HORE ENER$# AND *O" ACT (HR++&), *-ne +., +/&)Mr0 1AN HOLLEN0 Mr0 2ea3er, hile & support the responsi'le 4 development of our

nation(s resources, this 5ee36s legislation 4 prioritizes drilling over protecting

investors, improving rig safety, 4 respecting coastal communities and

conducting appropriate environmental 4 revie 0 !or t7ese reasons, & ill 'e

voting no and encouraging my 4 colleagues do the same 04 The )uter

Continental *helf Trans'oundary Hydrocar'on Agreements 4 AuthorizationAct (HR &'&) provides s2eci8c authorization for the 4 recently negotiated U009Me:icotrans'oundary agreement and esta'lishes 4 standards for all futureo+shore oil and gas agreements 5it7 2otential 4 ;oreign 2artners li3e Canada, R-ssia, t7e"a7amas and "erm-da0 &f 4


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)'ama dislikes the plan3he ill 'e forced to intervene >readthis ith o'ama intervention 'ad?=oman "#$" (aren "oman, RigKone taG, “7ite Ho-se Cannot -22ort $-l;

Transo-ndary "ill,7tt2B5550rigKone0comne5soilPgasa&++'7itePHo-sePCannotP-22ortP$-l;P

Transo-ndaryP"ill, *-ne +', +/&) T7e )'ama administration cannot support a 'ill that ould move forardesta'lishing a frameork for oil and gas exploration and production in thetrans'oundary zone in the :ulf of Mexico, t7e Oce o; Management and "-dget (OM")re2orted T-esday04 T7e 7ite Ho-se does s-22ort t7e goal set o-t in H0R0 &'& to 2ro?ide Congressional a22ro?al o;

t7e agreement and allo5 t7e ecretary o; t7e Interior to im2lement t7e agreement0 Ho5e?er, theadministration @strongly o'4ects@ to exempting actions taken 'y pu'liccompanies in accordance ith trans'oundary agreements fromre1uirements under ection &Q/ of the /odd#0rank Act and t7e ec-rities and E:c7angeCommission6s Nat-ral Reso-rce E:traction Disclos-re R-le04 As a 2ractical matter, this provision ouldaive the re1uirement for the disclosure of any payments made y reso-rcee:traction com2anies to t7e United tates or ;oreign go?ernments in accordance ith a

trans'oundary hydrocar'on agreement, OM" said in a statement0

The provisiondirectly and negatively impacts 78*8 e+orts to increase transparency andaccounta'ility, 2artic-larly in t7e oil, gas and minerals sectors0 4 OM" noted t7at t7e )'amaadministration looks ;or5ard to orking ith Congress to enact legislationthat ould focus the U009Me:ico Trans'oundary Agreement, 5it7o-t t7e incl-sion o;e:traneo-s and -nnecessary 2ro?isions0

Cooperation over the Trans'oundary Agreement is massivelyunpopularC0 -$ (Committee on !oreign Relations, United tates enate, “Oil Me:ico, and

t7e Transo-ndary Agreement, Minority taG Re2ort, Decemer +&, +/&+) T7e Trans'oundary Agreement (T"A) provides a 'ilateral 'asis upon hich'oth countries can develop the legal frameork necessary for 4oint productionof oil and natural gas reser?es t7at e:tend across o-r national maritime orders in t7e $-l; o;Me:ico04 ecretary o; tate Hillary Clinton and Me:ican Minister o; !oreign AGairs =atricia Es2inosa Cantellanosigned t7e Transo-ndary Agreement (T"A), ocially called t7e Agreement et5een t7e United tates o; Americaand t7e United Me:ican tates Concerning Transo-ndary Hydrocaron Reser?oirs in t7e 4 $-l; o; Me:ico, on!er-ary +/, +/&+, at Los Caos, Me:ico (see A22endi: I ;or t7e te:t o; t7e agreement)0 T7e Me:ican enate rati8edt7e agreement on A2ril &+, +/&+, -t t7e Oama administration 7as not ;ormally s-mitted t7e agreement ;or2assage in t7e U00 Congress04 T7e T"A 5as negotiated 2-rs-ant to t7e +/// Treaty on t7e Continental 7el;, 57ic7called ;or t7e U00 and Me:ico to estalis7 a mec7anism t7at transo-ndary oil and gas reser?es 5o-ld e s7ared

e-italy0 At t7e time, concern that companies ould drain Mexican reserves fromthe 78*8 side of the 'order as, re2ortedly, a hot 'utton political issue inMexico0 U2on concl-sion o; t7e +/// Treaty, t7e U00 2-t a moratori-m on oil and gas e:2loration on t7e U00

side o; t7e maritime order04 It is 5idely ac3no5ledged in ot7 ca2itals t7at t7e T"A negotiations mo?ed -ic3ly inorder to e com2leted in time ;or t7e rati8cation in Me:ico 2rior to +/&+ Congressional elections0 "ot7 =AN and =RI2olitical leaders -sed t7eir inS-ence to gain s-22ort ;or t7e T"A, 57ic7 t7e Me:ican enate rati8ed0 4 In t7e United

tates, t7e T=A stalled ithin the )'ama administration des2ite s-22ort y 3ey ocials int7e De2artments o; tate and Interior0 =rior to com2leting t7e agreement, t7e De2artments o; tate and Interior2artici2ated in enate !oreign Relations Committee rie8ngs to disc-ss stat-s o; t7e negotiations 7o5e?er,

there as no consultation on speci2c text0 T7e !RC Minority taG a22reciated candidassessments oGered y lead U00 negotiator Amassador Ric7ard Morningstar04 T7e )'amaadministration has not taken a position on the key 1uestion of hetherthe T=A is a treaty or an executive agreement, alt7o-g7 t7e latter seems t7e

http://www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/127326/White_House_Cannot_Support_Gulf_Transboundary_Billhttp://www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/127326/White_House_Cannot_Support_Gulf_Transboundary_Billhttp://www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/127326/White_House_Cannot_Support_Gulf_Transboundary_Billhttp://www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/127326/White_House_Cannot_Support_Gulf_Transboundary_Bill


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administration6s more li3ely 2re;erence0 A treaty 5o-ld e re?ie5ed y t7e enate !oreign Relations Committee andre-ire t7e ad?ice and consent 4 o; t7e enate, demanding a t5o9t7irds ?ote, ;or a22ro?al0 As 2art o; t7e treaty2rocess, t7e resol-tion o; rati8cation 5o-ld e re?ie5ed and amended in order to 2ro?ide Congressional-nderstandings on iss-es le;t -nclear y t7e te:t o; t7e T"A itsel;0 Additional im2lementing legislation aGecting t7eDe2artment o; Interior 5o-ld also e re-ired and need re?ie5 y its committees o; o?ersig7t0 4 An e:ec-ti?eagreement 5o-ld not re-ire t7e t5o9t7irds ?ote necessitated y a treaty, -t instead it 5o-ld e a22ro?ed in t7esame ;orm as a stat-te, re-iring 2assage y maFority in ot7 t7e enate and t7e Ho-se o; Re2resentati?es0

Legislation approving the agreement, necessary implementing authorities,4 and clari2cations regarding certain provisions of the T=A could 'e su'4ectto amendment, including 'y items unrelated to the T=A itself, thus 2ossilymiring the T=A in other political 2ghts0

The plan destroys the environment, pissing o+environmentalists, and threatens national militarypreparedness=olton - (Ale:ander "olton, , “Oamas drilling 2ro2osal s2ar3s attle amongenate Dems, 7tt2Bt7e7ill0com7omene5ssenate//9oamas9drilling9

2ro2osal9s2ar3s9attle9among9senate9democrats, /9&9&/)=resident "arac3 )'ama5s decision to open the nation5s coastline to o+shoredrilling has set up a fracas ith *enate /emocrats 04 en0 !ran3 Lauten'erg (D9N0*0), one o; t7e leading enate o22onents o; oGs7ore drilling, has 'lasted )'ama5s plan04 4 "-t1irginia Democratic ens0 *im e and Mar3 arner are on oard, -rging Oama to mo?e -ic3ly to o2en mid9Atlantic s7ores ;or oil and gas e:2loration04 4 “Drilling oG t7e 1irginia coast 5o-ld endanger many o; Ne5 *erseys

eac7es and ?irant coastal economies, La-tenerg said in a statement04 4 “:iving =ig )il moreaccess to our nation5s aters is really a Bill, =a'y, Bill policyB it threatensto kill 4o's, kill marine life and kill coastal economies that generate'illions of dollars, 7e added0 “)+shore drilling isn5t the solution to o-r energy2rolems, and I 5ill 8g7t t7is 2olicy and contin-e to 2-s7 ;or +&st cent-ry clean energy sol-tions0 4 Democratic

enatorial Cam2aign Committee C7airman o'ert Menendez (N0*0) also took a strong stanceagainst )'ama5s proposal ednesday04 “I 7a?e let t7e administration 3no5 t7at oGs7ore drilling is a

non9starter ;or me, MenendeK told T7e Ne5ar3 tar9Ledger0 “A s2ill in 1irginia ends -2 in Ca2e May, Ne5 *ersey0 4 Oama 7as 2ro2osed o2ening a ?ast stretc7 o; t7e Atlantic coast, ;rom t7e nort7ern ti2 o; Dela5are to mid9!lorida,to oGs7ore drilling04 4 e and arner 2-s7ed t7e administration to act in a letter to U00 Interior ecretary enalaKar in *an-ary04 4 e 5o-ld -rge yo- to 2rom2tly commence t7ese ste2s in order to ens-re t7at t7e 1irginialease sale is cond-cted in a manner t7at is timely and consistent 5it7 t7e interests o; t7e en?ironment and o-r

national sec-rity, t7e la5ma3ers 5rote04 4 *en8 =ill Nelson, a Democrat from 0lorida, also raisedconcerns over ho the ne drilling proposal might a+ect militaryexercises in his state0 4 4 “I?e tal3ed many times to ecretary alaKar and told 7im i; t7ey drilled tooclose to !loridas eac7es t7eyd e ris3ing t7e states economy and t7e en?ironment, Nelson said in a statement0“I elie?e t7is 2lan s7o5s t7ey 7eeded t7at concern0 4 4 “No5 I need to 7ear ;rom De;ense ecretary Roert $ates,

Nelson added0 “And & ant him to look me in the eye and assure me that this planill not compromise national security 'y interfering ith the unfetteredspace e have for training and testing our most sophisticated militaryeapons systems04 4 Re2-lican critics, s-c7 as ;ormer Alas3a $o?0 ara7 =alin, 7a?e also 2-t 2ress-reon Oama to de?elo2 t7e nations energy reso-rces04 4


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7tt2B5550tam2aay0comne5sen?ironmenta9year9a;ter9dee25ater97oriKon9disaster9o22osition9to9oil9drilling9;ades&&'+, /9&9&&)In as7ington, the )'ama administration has adopted 57at Interior ecretary alaKar calleda @thoughtful and delierate approach(( to reopening the gulf , 5it7 a ne5 o?ersig7t agencyand ne5 sa;ety meas-res notaly, one mandating t7at t7e ind-stry de?elo2 dee295ater containment systems ;or5orst9case lo5o-ts, li3e t7e one t7at destroyed t7e Dee25ater HoriKon04 In Octoer, t7e 7ite Ho-se li;ted t7edrilling an it im2osed a;ter t7e "= s2ill -t didn6t start iss-ing ne5 2ermits -ntil last mont7, a22ro?ing &/ ne5dee2 5ater 5ells so ;ar, 5it7 &Q more in 2rocess0 T7e administration also agreed to o2en ne5 territory ;ore:2loration y selling ne5 leases -t only in t7e already 7ea?ily drilled central and 5estern g-l;04 T7e t7ree illsa22ro?ed y a Ho-se committee last 5ee3 don6t target !lorida 5aters s2eci8cally -t la5ma3ers 2otentially co-ld-se t7em as tools to car?e o-t 2rime areas ;or drilling, or s7rin3 or li;t t7e moratori-m04 !or no5, 5it7 t7e Ho-se

and enate controlled y diGerent 2arties, it(s dou'tful any drilling 'ill can make it out ofCongress8 Nelson and most environmentalists 'elieve the 'an on 0lorida(sfederal aters can survive political pressure and maneuvering 04 =resident)'ama ould have to lose and =ill Nelson ould have to lose and they(dhave to 'e replaced 'y people ho ant to remove that 'oundary,66 said !-llero; t7e !lorida ildli;e !ederation0 I don6t t7in3 t7at is going to 7a22en066 4 A more serio-s t7reat, t7ey say, is t7e2ossiility o; a ;-t-re !lorida Legislat-re o2ening -2 state9controlled 5aters0 T7at mo?e 5o-ld ma3e it 2olitically

dic-lt to F-sti;y a contin-ing ;ederal an04 A coalition of environmental groups, a?e O-r eas,"eac7es and 7ores, launched a petition dri?e a;ter t7e +// Ho-se ?ote to 2-t a an on drilling in state

5aters into t7e !lorida Constit-tion0 !ormer $o?0 C7arlie Crist6s eGort to do t7e same t7ing d-ring a s2eciallegislati?e session in *-ly 2ro?ed dead on arri?al04 o ;ar, !-ller ac3no5ledged, only a ;e5 t7o-sand signat-res 7a?eeen gat7ered t7ro-g7 an online site, ;ar s7ort o; t7e nearly //,/// needed0 In !er-ary, Crist6s ;ormer c7ie;8nancial ocer, Ale: in3, 57o lost t7e go?ernor6s race to cott, agreed to co9c7air t7e 2etition dri?e 5it7 t7e goal

o; getting an amendment 2ro2osal on t7e allot y +/&+ or, more realistically, t7e ;ollo5ing year04 0ullerdoesn(t anticipate lamakers trying to ram through a divisive drilling 'illin the near future -t t7at is one reason 57y 5e 5ant it in t7e Constit-tion0 e don6t 5ant to see it as a2ossiility at all066

=ill Nelson 7* *enator from 0lorida


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enough0 And independent voters are confused 'y the president(s rhetoric04 According to t7e $O= 2olitical 8rm Res-rgent Re2-lic, independent voters in Colorado and 1irginiadon(t understand hat )'ama(s all o; t7e ao?e energy mantra means0 T7e re2ortsaid, 7o5e?er, t7at once t7e 2olicy 5as descried as oil, gas, coal, n-clear 2o5er, solar and ot7er alternati?eenergies, 2artici2ants ecame ent7-siastic and ?ie5 s-c7 a strategy as credile and necessary to ecoming more

energy inde2endent04 A recent $all-2 2oll indicated t7at American voters are polarized on

energy issues0 T7e s-r?ey ;o-nd t7at 2ercent o; t7e 2-lic elie?es energy de?elo2ment is moreim2ortant t7an en?ironmental 2rotection, 57ile & 2ercent o; t7e 2-lic ran3s 2rotecting t7e en?ironment as aigger 2riority04 In t7at 2olitical climate, Oama6s oGs7ore oil de?elo2ment 2olicies are not li3ely to aGect t7enation6s most conser?ati?e or lieral ?oters, noted Larry aato, director o; t7e Uni?ersity o; 1irginia6s Center ;or

=olitics0 The environmentalists have no place to go except )'ama, and)'ama isn(t going to convince any conservatives or epu'licans to 'ackhim ased on 7is oil and gas 2ro2osals, aato said04 He6s o?io-sly aiming at s5ing inde2endents, aatoadded0 He6s trying to s7o5 t7at 7e6s 2-rs-ing a middle 2at7, t7e one many inde2endents li3e0 Maye it 5ill 5or30 4"ac3 to t7e original 2lan, min-s + 2ieces4 Oama6s all9o;9t7e9ao?e energy 2olicy is in 3ee2ing 5it7 7is 2re9oil9s2illoGs7ore oil and gas de?elo2ment 2ro2osal0 A;ter t7e Dee25ater HoriKon disaster, t7e 7ite Ho-se sla22ed a si:9mont7 moratori-m on all ne5 oil and gas de?elo2ment0 ince t7e moratori-m ended, Oama 7as systematicallyreintrod-ced most o; t7e early oil de?elo2ment 2ro2osals04 T5o 2ieces o; t7e old 2lan are missing0 Oamaac3trac3ed on 7is 2ro2osal to allo5 oil e:2loration oG 1irginia6s coast0 T7e ne5 East Coast oGs7ore 2lan lays t7egro-nd5or3 ;or seismic st-dies, -t not drilling, along t7e mid9 and so-t7 Atlantic0 4 T7e 7ite Ho-se also dro22ed a2ro2osal to allo5 e:2loration in t7e eastern $-l; o; Me:ico 5it7in &+Q miles o; !lorida, an area oG limits d-e to acongressional moratori-m0 D-ring +/&/ negotiations, t7e administration oGered to allo5 oil leasing in t7e region i;Congress li;ted t7e moratori-m and 2assed a gloal 5arming ill0 7en t7e climate c7ange legislation died,7o5e?er, t7e drilling 2ro?ision lost 7ite Ho-se ;a?or04 ince t7e Re2-licans too3 control o; t7e Ho-se in +/&&,

:); leaders have advanced a series of 'ills that ould go ;ar eyond Oama6soGs7ore oil drilling 2olicies, essentially alloing development along all 78*8 shores0 "-tthose measures have 'een tharted 'y the /emocrat#controlled *enate0

FFThis is 4ust an 0G& /emocrats don5t support it3'arely passedthe house7tt2B5550go?trac30-scongress?otes&&9+/&7+H0R0 &'&B O-ter Continental 7el; Transo-ndary Hydrocaron AgreementsA-t7oriKation Act

On =assage o; t7e "ill in t7e Ho-se

N-merBHo-se 1ote W+ DateB

*-n +, +/& (&&t7 Congress)Res-ltB=assed"illBH0R0 &'&B O-ter Continental 7el; Transo-ndary Hydrocaron AgreementsA-t7oriKation ActIntrod-ced y Re20 *eG D-ncan on A2ril &., +/&

C-rrent tat-sB =assed Ho-se T7is 5as a ?ote to 2ass a ill or agree to a resol-tion0

TOTAL RE=U"LICAN DEMOCRAT A#E +Q' QX ++. +. NO && X & &/NOT 1OTIN$ +X REYUIREDB im2le MaFority


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mexico hydrocarbons politics - hss 2013

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