Analysts are saying that the oil and gas industry’s response to the Trump administration’s announcement last week—that almost all of the U.S. continental shelf may soon be open for drilling leases—is due to be slow. The draft program, which would replace President Barack Obama’s leasing plan through 2022, which restricted drilling in the Arctic and other federal waters, fulfills the White House’s promise to encourage the American fossil fuel sector, even as the international community opts for renewable and alternative energies in the fight against climate change. If the proposal is adopted, 47 potential lease sales could open up 25 of 26 planning areas, with the exception being Alaska’s North Aleutian Basin, which was deemed off limits by President George W. Bush, according to a report by Oil and Gas Investor . Nineteen sales would still proceed in offshore Alaska, seven in the Pacific, twelve in the Gulf of […]