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Ten steps to smooth, successful permitting Britch says permitting an Alaska drilling project requires careful planning, local knowledge and a strong rapport with the regulators Alan Bailey Petroleum News Staff Writer
For a company interested in drilling for oil and gas in Alaska, the prospect of applying for the necessary permits may seem like trying to map a way through a minefield. However, according to the man who permitted Kerr-McGee’s recent North Slope exploration wells, some up-front planning, the enlistment of local knowledge and a willingness to work with the regulators can render the process smooth and successful.
Bob Britch, an Anchorage-based engineering and environmental consultant, has amassed more than 30 years of experience in dealing with environmental issues and has coordinated drilling permitting for several companies, including Kerr-McGee, Armstrong Alaska and Forest Oil. Britch’s experience includes permitting wells offshore and onshore throughout Alaska. Typically, he is involved in permitting two to six oil and gas projects each year, as well as doing other environmental work. Currently, he permitting the governor of Alaska’s stratigraphic test well in the “nearshore Beaufort Sea.”
Britch offered the following 10 rules for successful permitting in Alaska. Gather preliminary information Rule No. 1: It is essential to start out by assembling and assessing the critical information about what you’re going to do. Information such as where you are going to drill and what kind of rig you are going to use will have a major impact on the permit requirements.
Assembling some of this information will prove fairly straightforward — drilling contractors have standard ways of doing things, he said.
“For just about any oil and gas project there are givens that they will have to do,” Britch said. “Most of the steps are really limited, primarily because of logistics or standard practices.”
But the operator does have considerable control over some parameters, especially the location of the drill site. For example, a drill site that requires the construction of an access road is likely to require more complex permitting than a site next to an existing road. Ask the regulator Rule No. 2: Once you know what you’re going to be doing it is generally a good idea to review your plans with the regulators, especially to find out how an agency would interpret the ever-changing regulatory requirements. In particular, you don’t want to get to the end of the permitting process and then find that you have to apply for an additional permit.
“If there are any gray areas, it’s best to ask the agencies up front,” Britch said. “It’s always best to ask them in case something slips by.”
People normally hold a meeting with the agencies prior to preparing the permit applications.
“One mechanism that the agencies typically use to help facilitate is something they call the pre-application meeting, where you sit down with all the agencies prior to submitting the applications and you ... ask some of these questions,” Britch said. Start early, be conservative However well you prepare your permit applications, unexpected issues and delays always crop up.
Rule No. 3: It is best to start the permitting process as early as possible. As well as enabling you to complete the permitting in a timely manner, starting early allows you to adjust project plans to accommodate permitting issues.
Rule No. 4: Err on the side of overstating your requirements.
For example, if you’re not certain what kind of rig you’ll use, specify a larger rig than you’re likely to need.
“Ask for something bigger and it’s much easier to back off than to ask for more,” Britch said.
However, don’t fall into the trap of providing more information than the agency needs for a particular type of permit. The agency won’t be sure what to do with the additional information.
“On several occasions I’ve seen them require a new permit, because they’re not sure and they’re trying to be safe,” Britch said. Involve the regulators, know the regulators Rule No. 5: You can also avoid misunderstandings by involving the regulators in discussions about your project, especially when problems arise.
“If you run into a problem, make sure that you involve them in it — they don’t want to be surprised,” Britch said. Deferring a problem to the end of the permitting process can cause major problems, Britch said.
Rule No. 6: Good communication depends on getting to know the regulators — different regulators do things in different ways.
“You have to interact with different regulators in different manners,” Britch said.
A personality clash between a regulator and the person who interfaces with him or her can become especially damaging. Britch emphasized the importance of recognizing this type of problem and taking prompt action. Educate the regulators Rule No. 7: By educating the regulators about your project you can help identify any areas that might give rise to litigation and where additional information might be needed to defend the permit.
“The regulators are in a position of public trust and they also have to be able to defend their position with other non-government organizations,” Britch said.
Pilot programs can prove especially valuable in fleshing out regulatory issues without landing companies in a legal and regulatory quagmire. For example, one pilot program tested the effectiveness of new techniques for solidifying drilling waste. In addition to developing improved techniques for waste disposal, data from the program helped the agencies understand the processes involved.
“It’s a win-win situation for everybody,” Britch said. Avoid unnecessary permits Rule No. 8: Make sure that you design your project in a way that minimizes the number of permits that you need. For example, moving a drill site from federal to private land can dramatically reduce the number of permits required.
“Literally you can move your project 200 feet and be in a totally different permitting arena,” Britch said.
Avoiding wetlands and obtaining water from an established commercial source can also simplify the permitting.
“There’s a lot of things you can do like that that may make sense,” Britch said. Limit regulatory access, never lie to regulators Rule No. 9: Limiting regulatory access by establishing a single point of contact between the project and the regulators avoids the possibility of expensive and time-consuming confusion. Different people talking to the regulators may convey different messages about what is planned.
“You want to try to focus all your discussions to as few people as absolutely possible,” Britch said.
Rule No. 10: It may seem obvious that lying to the regulators is a really bad idea, but a number of people have come badly unstuck by trying to ‘stretch the truth,’ Britch said. Chances are that lying will lead to fines and other punitive actions. Lying will also cause you great difficulty in regaining credibility with the regulators.
“The regulators know what they’re doing ... they’ve been in the game a long time and they can tell a lie and they can tell when something’s really questionable,” Britch said. And always remember that the regulators hold a duty to issue permits for any work that can proceed in a legally compliant manner. So, if you plan adequately and work with the agencies, you’ll find the permitting process much less of a minefield than you expect.
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