US appeals court refuses to vacate Biden approval of Alaska’s Willow oil project
- A federal appeals court panel refused to vacate the Biden administration's March 2023 approval of ConocoPhillips' Willow oil project in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve.
- This followed the overturning of a prior Trump-era version in 2021 and an environmental review process under Biden that faced legal challenges from environmentalists and an Iñupiat group.
- ConocoPhillips received permission to develop three drilling locations encompassing up to 199 wells within a 385-acre area, and the company continues work on infrastructure with plans to begin oil production by 2029.
- Critics argue the project conflicts with climate goals and risks regional industrialization, but the company said it is "thrilled" to move forward with responsible development.
- The ruling allows the project to proceed despite procedural errors found by the court, with environmental groups considering Supreme Court appeals and state leaders highlighting job and access benefits.
20 Articles
20 Articles
Drill, Baby, Drill: Appeals court says Alaska’s Willow Project can proceed
A three‑judge panel of the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday declined to take apart a Biden-era federal approval for ConocoPhillips’ Willow Project on the edge of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. Though the court said there were some procedural shortcomings in the Bureau of Land Management’s review, those errors were minor in nature […] The post Drill, Baby, Drill: Appeals court says Alaska’s Willow Project can proceed appeared f…
Appeals court upholds approval of Willow project on Alaska’s North Slope
The ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. building in Anchorage is seen on June 28, 2023. The company has said it will spend at least $7 billion to develop the huge Willow field and that first production is expected by the end of the decade. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)A federal appeals court on Friday upheld the Biden administration’s approval of a major oil development on Alaska’s North Slope, even though it identified one flaw with the action. …


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U.S. appeals court refuses to overturn Biden administration approval of Alaska’s Willow oil project
The court’s majority opinion found what it called a procedural but not substantive error by the Bureau of Land Management in its analysis of the project in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska.

US appeals court refuses to vacate Biden approval of Alaska's Willow oil project
A federal appeals court panel has refused to vacate the approval of the massive Willow oil project on Alaska’s petroleum-rich North Slope.
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