The Trump administration on Thursday finalized its reversal of Biden-era limits on oil and gas development in Alaska, reopening more than 10 million acres of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A) to drilling as part of a broader effort to expand domestic energy production.
Move To ‘Unlock Alaska’s Energy Potential’
The Department of the Interior said that it has issued a final rule rescinding the 2024 Bureau of Land Management regulation that had barred new leasing on 10.6 million acres and restricted development on millions more.
“By rescinding the 2024 rule, we are following the direction set by President Trump to unlock Alaska's energy potential, create jobs for North Slope communities and strengthen American energy security,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement.
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Burgum added that “This action restores common-sense management and ensures responsible development benefits [that] both Alaska and the nation.”
The NPR-A, established in 1923, remains the largest tract of undisturbed public land in the country. The Department said reversing the 2024 rule would “strengthen American Energy Dominance and reduce reliance on foreign oil.”
It also allows the Bureau of Land Management to take care of the reserve under “new 2025 regulations that align with those originally established in 1977.”
A Step In ‘The Right Direction’
Alaska’s Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) came out in support of the move, praising President Donald Trump for delivering “on his promise to unleash Alaska's extraordinary resource potential,” on Thursday, in a post on X. He added that the opening up of NPR-A as “yet another step in the right direction for Alaska.”
An Alaska Native group, Voice of the Arctic Inupiat, too, has supported the decision, noting that energy infrastructure contributes to the region’s tax revenues, helping support healthcare and education.
However, economist and former Secretary of Labor, Robert Reich, has termed this as an outcome of the $450 million that oil and gas companies had spent backing Trump and other Republican candidates last year. “Talk about a return on investment,” he quipped last week, in a post on X.
Oil And Gas Stocks In The Spotlight
Leading U.S. oil and gas companies with exposure to Alaskan energy, such as ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP), ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX) are in the spotlight.
| Stocks | After Hours | Year-To-Date Performance |
| ConocoPhillips | +0.57% | -10.65% |
| ExxonMobil Corp. | -0.32% | +10.70% |
| Chevron Corp. | +1.25% | +6.05% |
Crude oil prices are up 2.78% on Thursday night, hovering around $60.32 per barrel, while U.S. natural gas prices rose to 4.62 per MMBtu, or Million British Thermal Units, up by a little over 1% during the day.
Photo Courtesy: muratart on Shutterstock.com
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