Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon announced a CARES Act package aimed at assisting Wyoming’s primary economic driver: the natural gas and oil industry. The industry has seen unparalleled demand destruction as a result of COVID-19 and the resulting economic shutdown.
Following successful programs for main street businesses, non-profits and the agriculture industry, the state of Wyoming will now offer $15 million in relief to Wyoming’s natural gas and oil operators through the Energy Rebound Program. This Program ties aid to specific projects that will bring immediate jobs and longer-term revenue to Wyoming at precisely the time it’s most needed.
Operators are eligible for up to $500,000 for:
- Completing drilled but previously uncompleted wells,
- Re-fracking wells, and/or
- Plugging and abandoning idle wells
“The Energy Rebound Program is very welcome news to our members and the industry as a whole,” said PAW President Pete Obermueller. “This program means immediate jobs in Wyoming’s natural gas and oil industry during this challenging time. Governor Gordon and his staff should be applauded for their strategic approach. Rather than a simple payment, the Governor has ensured that every dollar spent in this program will create jobs, leverage revenue returns to the state, accelerate important reclamation activities, or all of the above.”
For every deep horizontal well completed under this program, the state’s direction of federal money will result in additional investment of millions of dollars from the operator and will return millions of dollars more in state and local tax revenue over the life of each well. Every idle well that has reached the end of its economic life that is plugged and reclaimed under this program requires further investment by the operator in both capital and jobs. As important, this part of the Energy Rebound Program advances reclamation efforts in Wyoming.
In 2019, the natural gas and oil industry paid $1.67 billion to state and local governments to help pay for government services like public education, general fund operations and public infrastructure. Wyoming’s tax code is heavily reliant on oil and natural gas production to generate revenue. Every federal dollar spent has the potential to return revenues to Wyoming by a factor of 20.
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