§ 550.105 - Definitions.

§ 550.105 Definitions.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 89 FR 71182, Sept. 3, 2024.

Terms used in this part will have the meanings given in the Act and as defined in this section:

Act means the OCS Lands Act, as amended (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.)

Affected State means with respect to any program, plan, lease sale, or other activity proposed, conducted, or approved under the provisions of the Act, any State:

(1) The laws of which are declared, under section 4(a)(2) of the Act, to be the law of the United States for the portion of the OCS on which such activity is, or is proposed to be, conducted;

(2) Which is, or is proposed to be, directly connected by transportation facilities to any artificial island or installation or other device permanently or temporarily attached to the seabed;

(3) Which is receiving, or according to the proposed activity, will receive oil for processing, refining, or transshipment that was extracted from the OCS and transported directly to such State by means of vessels or by a combination of means including vessels;

(4) Which is designated by the Secretary as a State in which there is a substantial probability of significant impact on or damage to the coastal, marine, or human environment, or a State in which there will be significant changes in the social, governmental, or economic infrastructure, resulting from the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas anywhere on the OCS; or

(5) In which the Secretary finds that because of such activity there is, or will be, a significant risk of serious damage, due to factors such as prevailing winds and currents to the marine or coastal environment in the event of any oil spill, blowout, or release of oil or gas from vessels, pipelines, or other transshipment facilities.

Analyzed geological information means data collected under a permit or a lease that have been analyzed. Analysis may include, but is not limited to, identification of lithologic and fossil content, core analysis, laboratory analyses of physical and chemical properties, well logs or charts, results from formation fluid tests, and descriptions of hydrocarbon occurrences or hazardous conditions.

Ancillary activities mean those activities on your lease or unit that you:

(1) Conduct to obtain data and information to ensure proper exploration or development of your lease or unit; and

(2) Can conduct without BOEM approval of an application or permit.

Archaeological interest means capable of providing scientific or humanistic understanding of past human behavior, cultural adaptation, and related topics through the application of scientific or scholarly techniques, such as controlled observation, contextual measurement, controlled collection, analysis, interpretation, and explanation.

Archaeological resource means any the material remains of human life or activities that are at least 50 years of age and that are of archaeological interest, including any historic property described by the National Historic Preservation Act, as defined in 36 CFR 800.16(l).

Arctic OCS means the Beaufort Sea and Chukchi Sea Planning Areas (for more information on these areas, see the Proposed Final OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2012-2017 (June 2012) at http://www.boem.gov/Oil-and-Gas-Energy-Program/Leasing/Five-Year-Program/2012-2017/Program-Area-Maps/index.aspx).

Arctic OCS conditions means, for the purposes of this part, the conditions operators can reasonably expect during operations on the Arctic OCS. Such conditions, depending on the time of year, include, but are not limited to: extreme cold, freezing spray, snow, extended periods of low light, strong winds, dense fog, sea ice, strong currents, and dangerous sea states. Remote location, relative lack of infrastructure, and the existence of subsistence hunting and fishing areas are also characteristic of the Arctic region.

Assign means to convey an ownership interest in an oil, gas, or sulfur lease, ROW grant or RUE grant. For the purposes of this part, “assign” is synonymous with “transfer” and the two terms are used interchangeably.

Attainment area means, for any criteria air pollutant, an area which is shown by monitored data or which is calculated by air quality modeling (or other methods determined by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be reliable) not to exceed any primary or secondary ambient air quality standards established by EPA.

Best available and safest technology (BAST) means the best available and safest technologies that the Director determines to be economically feasible wherever failure of equipment would have a significant effect on safety, health, or the environment.

Best available control technology (BACT) means an emission limitation based on the maximum degree of reduction for each criteria air pollutant and VOC subject to regulation, taking into account energy, environmental and economic impacts, and other costs. The Regional Director will verify the BACT on a case-by-case basis, and it may include reductions achieved through the application of processes, systems, and techniques for the control of each criteria air pollutant and VOC.

Coastal environment means the physical, atmospheric, and biological components, conditions, and factors that interactively determine the productivity, state, condition, and quality of the terrestrial ecosystem from the shoreline inward to the boundaries of the coastal zone.

Coastal zone means the coastal waters (including the lands therein and thereunder) and the adjacent shorelands (including the waters therein and thereunder) strongly influenced by each other and in proximity to the shorelands of the several coastal States. The coastal zone includes islands, transition and intertidal areas, salt marshes, wetlands, and beaches. The coastal zone extends seaward to the outer limit of the U.S. territorial sea and extends inland from the shorelines to the extent necessary to control shorelands, the uses of which have a direct and significant impact on the coastal waters, and the inward boundaries of which may be identified by the several coastal States, under the authority in section 305(b)(1) of the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) of 1972.

Competitive reservoir means a reservoir in which there are one or more producible or producing well completions on each of two or more leases or portions of leases, with different lease operating interests, from which the lessees plan future production.

Correlative rights when used with respect to lessees of adjacent leases, means the right of each lessee to be afforded an equal opportunity to explore for, develop, and produce, without waste, minerals from a common source.

Criteria air pollutant means any air pollutant for which the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) has established a primary or secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) pursuant to section 109 of the Clean Air Act.

Data means facts and statistics, measurements, or samples that have not been analyzed, processed, or interpreted.

Departures mean approvals granted by the appropriate BSEE or BOEM representative for operating requirements/procedures other than those specified in the regulations found in this part. These requirements/procedures may be necessary to control a well; properly develop a lease; conserve natural resources, or protect life, property, or the marine, coastal, or human environment.

Development means those activities that take place following discovery of minerals in paying quantities, including but not limited to geophysical activity, drilling, platform construction, and operation of all directly related onshore support facilities, and which are for the purpose of producing the minerals discovered.

Development geological and geophysical (G&G) activities means those G&G and related data-gathering activities on your lease or unit that you conduct following discovery of oil, gas, or sulfur in paying quantities to detect or imply the presence of oil, gas, or sulfur in commercial quantities.

Director means the Director of BOEM of the U.S. Department of the Interior, or an official authorized to act on the Director's behalf.

District Manager means the BSEE officer with authority and responsibility for operations or other designated program functions for a district within a BSEE Region.

Eastern Gulf of Mexico means all OCS areas of the Gulf of Mexico the BOEM Director decides are adjacent to the State of Florida. The Eastern Gulf of Mexico is not the same as the Eastern Planning Area, an area established for OCS lease sales.

Emission offsets mean emission reductions obtained from facilities, either onshore or offshore, other than the facility or facilities covered by the proposed Exploration Plan (EP), Development and Production Plan (DPP), or Development Operations Coordination Document (DOCD).

Enhanced recovery operations mean pressure maintenance operations, secondary and tertiary recovery, cycling, and similar recovery operations that alter the natural forces in a reservoir to increase the ultimate recovery of oil or gas.

Existing facility, as used in § 550.303, means an Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) facility described in an Exploration Plan, a Development and Production Plan, or a Development Operations Coordination Document, approved before June 2, 1980.

Exploration means the commercial search for oil, gas, or sulfur. Activities classified as exploration include but are not limited to:

(1) Geophysical and geological (G&G) surveys using magnetic, gravity, seismic reflection, seismic refraction, gas sniffers, coring, or other systems to detect or imply the presence of oil, gas, or sulfur; and

(2) Any drilling conducted for the purpose of searching for commercial quantities of oil, gas, and sulfur, including the drilling of any additional well needed to delineate any reservoir to enable the lessee to decide whether to proceed with development and production.

Facility, as used in § 550.303, means all installations or devices permanently or temporarily attached to the seabed. They include mobile offshore drilling units (MODUs), even while operating in the “tender assist” mode (i.e., with skid-off drilling units) or other vessels engaged in drilling or downhole operations. They are used for exploration, development, and production activities for oil, gas, or sulfur and emit or have the potential to emit any air pollutant from one or more sources. They include all floating production systems (FPSs), including column-stabilized-units (CSUs); floating production, storage and offloading facilities (FPSOs); tension-leg platforms (TLPs); spars, etc. During production, multiple installations or devices are a single facility if the installations or devices are at a single site. Any vessel used to transfer production from an offshore facility is part of the facility while it is physically attached to the facility.

Financial assurance means a surety bond, a pledge of Treasury securities, a decommissioning account, a third-party guarantee, or another form of security acceptable to the BOEM Regional Director, that is used to ensure compliance with obligations under the regulations in this part and under the terms of a lease, a RUE grant, or a pipeline ROW grant.

Flaring means the burning of natural gas as it is released into the atmosphere.

Gas reservoir means a reservoir that contains hydrocarbons predominantly in a gaseous (single-phase) state.

Gas-well completion means a well completed in a gas reservoir or in the associated gas-cap of an oil reservoir.

Geological and geophysical (G&G) explorations mean those G&G surveys on your lease or unit that use seismic reflection, seismic refraction, magnetic, gravity, gas sniffers, coring, or other systems to detect or imply the presence of oil, gas, or sulfur in commercial quantities.

Governor means the Governor of a State, or the person or entity designated by, or under, State law to exercise the powers granted to such Governor under the Act.

H2S absent means:

(1) Drilling, logging, coring, testing, or producing operations have confirmed the absence of H2S in concentrations that could potentially result in atmospheric concentrations of 20 ppm or more of H2S; or

(2) Drilling in the surrounding areas and correlation of geological and seismic data with equivalent stratigraphic units have confirmed an absence of H2S throughout the area to be drilled.

H2S present means drilling, logging, coring, testing, or producing operations have confirmed the presence of H2S in concentrations and volumes that could potentially result in atmospheric concentrations of 20 ppm or more of H2S.

H2S unknown means the designation of a zone or geologic formation where neither the presence nor absence of H2S has been confirmed.

Human environment means the physical, social, and economic components, conditions, and factors that interactively determine the state, condition, and quality of living conditions, employment, and health of those affected, directly or indirectly, by activities occurring on the OCS.

Interpreted geological information means geological knowledge, often in the form of schematic cross sections, 3-dimensional representations, and maps, developed by determining the geological significance of data and analyzed geological information.

Interpreted geophysical information means geophysical knowledge, often in the form of schematic cross sections, 3-dimensional representations, and maps, developed by determining the geological significance of geophysical data and analyzed geophysical information.

Lease means an agreement that is issued under section 8 or maintained under section 6 of the Act and that authorizes exploration for, and development and production of, minerals. The term also means the area covered by that authorization, whichever the context requires.

Lease term pipelines mean those pipelines owned and operated by a lessee or operator that are completely contained within the boundaries of a single lease, unit, or contiguous (not cornering) leases of that lessee or operator.

Lessee means a person who has entered into a lease with the United States to explore for, develop, and produce the leased minerals. The term lessee also includes the BOEM-approved assignee of the lease, and the owner or the BOEM-approved assignee of operating rights for the lease.

Major Federal action means any action or proposal by the Secretary that is subject to the provisions of section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, 42 U.S.C. (2)(C) (i.e., an action that will have a significant impact on the quality of the human environment requiring preparation of an environmental impact statement under section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act).

Marine environment means the physical, atmospheric, and biological components, conditions, and factors that interactively determine the productivity, state, condition, and quality of the marine ecosystem. These include the waters of the high seas, the contiguous zone, transitional and intertidal areas, salt marshes, and wetlands within the coastal zone and on the OCS.

Material remains means physical evidence of human habitation, occupation, use, or activity, including the site, location, or context in which such evidence is situated.

Maximum efficient rate (MER) means the maximum sustainable daily oil or gas withdrawal rate from a reservoir that will permit economic development and depletion of that reservoir without detriment to ultimate recovery.

Maximum production rate (MPR) means the approved maximum daily rate at which oil or gas may be produced from a specified oil-well or gas-well completion.

Minerals include oil, gas, sulfur, geopressured-geothermal and associated resources, and all other minerals that are authorized by an Act of Congress to be produced.

Natural resources include, without limiting the generality thereof, oil, gas, and all other minerals, and fish, shrimp, oysters, clams, crabs, lobsters, sponges, kelp, and other marine animal and plant life but does not include water power or the use of water for the production of power.

Nonattainment area means, for any criteria air pollutant, an area which is shown by monitored data or which is calculated by air quality modeling (or other methods determined by the Administrator of the U.S. EPA to be reliable) to exceed any primary or secondary NAAQS established by the U.S. EPA.

Nonsensitive reservoir means a reservoir in which ultimate recovery is not decreased by high reservoir production rates.

Oil reservoir means a reservoir that contains hydrocarbons predominantly in a liquid (single-phase) state.

Oil reservoir with an associated gas cap means a reservoir that contains hydrocarbons in both a liquid and gaseous (two-phase) state.

Oil-well completion means a well completed in an oil reservoir or in the oil accumulation of an oil reservoir with an associated gas cap.

Operating rights mean any interest held in a lease with the right to explore for, develop, and produce leased substances.

Operator means the person the lessee(s) designates as having control or management of operations on the leased area or a portion thereof. An operator may be a lessee, the BOEM-approved or BSEE-approved designated agent of the lessee(s), or the holder of operating rights under a BOEM-approved operating rights assignment.

Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) means all submerged lands lying seaward and outside of the area of lands beneath navigable waters as defined in section 2 of the Submerged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301) whose subsoil and seabed appertain to the United States and are subject to its jurisdiction and control.

Person includes a natural person, an association (including partnerships, joint ventures, and trusts), a State, a political subdivision of a State, or a private, public, or municipal corporation.

Pipelines are the piping, risers, and appurtenances installed for transporting oil, gas, sulfur, and produced waters.

Processed geological or geophysical information means data collected under a permit or a lease that have been processed or reprocessed. Processing involves changing the form of data to facilitate interpretation. Processing operations may include, but are not limited to, applying corrections for known perturbing causes, rearranging or filtering data, and combining or transforming data elements. Reprocessing is the additional processing other than ordinary processing used in the general course of evaluation. Reprocessing operations may include varying identified parameters for the detailed study of a specific problem area.

Production means those activities that take place after the successful completion of any means for the removal of minerals, including such removal, field operations, transfer of minerals to shore, operation monitoring, maintenance, and workover operations.

Production areas are those areas where flammable petroleum gas, volatile liquids or sulfur are produced, processed (e.g., compressed), stored, transferred (e.g., pumped), or otherwise handled before entering the transportation process.

Projected emissions mean emissions, either controlled or uncontrolled, from a source or sources.

Prospect means a geologic feature having the potential for mineral deposits.

Regional Director means the BOEM officer with responsibility and authority for a Region within BOEM.

Regional Supervisor means the BOEM officer with responsibility and authority for operations or other designated program functions within a BOEM Region.

Right-of-Use and Easement (RUE) means a right to use a portion of the seabed, at an OCS site other than on a lease you own, to construct, secure to the seafloor, use, modify, or maintain platforms, seafloor production equipment, artificial islands, facilities, installations, and/or other devices to support the exploration, development, or production of oil, gas, or sulfur resources from an OCS lease or a lease on State submerged lands.

Right-of-way (ROW) pipelines are those pipelines that are contained within:

(1) The boundaries of a single lease or unit, but are not owned and operated by a lessee or operator of that lease or unit;

(2) The boundaries of contiguous (not cornering) leases that do not have a common lessee or operator;

(3) The boundaries of contiguous (not cornering) leases that have a common lessee or operator but are not owned and operated by that common lessee or operator; or

(4) An unleased block(s).

Sensitive reservoir means a reservoir in which the production rate will affect ultimate recovery.

Significant archaeological resource means those archaeological resources that meet the criteria of significance for eligibility to the National Register of Historic Places as defined in 36 CFR 60.4, or its successor.

Suspension means a granted or directed deferral of the requirement to produce (Suspension of Production (SOP)) or to conduct leaseholding operations (Suspension of Operations (SOO)).

Transfer means to convey an ownership interest in an oil, gas, or sulfur lease, ROW grant or RUE grant. For the purposes of this part, “transfer” is synonymous with “assign” and the two terms are used interchangeably.

Venting means the release of gas into the atmosphere without igniting it. This includes gas that is released underwater and bubbles to the atmosphere.

Volatile organic compound (VOC) means any organic compound that is emitted to the atmosphere as a vapor. Unreactive compounds are excluded from the preceding sentence of this definition.

Waste of oil, gas, or sulfur means:

(1) The physical waste of oil, gas, or sulfur;

(2) The inefficient, excessive, or improper use, or the unnecessary dissipation of reservoir energy;

(3) The locating, spacing, drilling, equipping, operating, or producing of any oil, gas, or sulfur well(s) in a manner that causes or tends to cause a reduction in the quantity of oil, gas, or sulfur ultimately recoverable under prudent and proper operations or that causes or tends to cause unnecessary or excessive surface loss or destruction of oil or gas; or

(4) The inefficient storage of oil.

Welding means all activities connected with welding, including hot tapping and burning.

Wellbay is the area on a facility within the perimeter of the outermost wellheads.

Well-completion operations mean the work conducted to establish production from a well after the production-casing string has been set, cemented, and pressure-tested.

Well-control fluid means drilling mud, completion fluid, or workover fluid as appropriate to the particular operation being conducted.

Western Gulf of Mexico means all OCS areas of the Gulf of Mexico except those the BOEM Director decides are adjacent to the State of Florida. The Western Gulf of Mexico is not the same as the Western Planning Area, an area established for OCS lease sales.

Workover operations mean the work conducted on wells after the initial well-completion operation for the purpose of maintaining or restoring the productivity of a well.

You, depending on the context of this part, means a bidder, a lessee (record title owner), a sublessee (operating rights owner), a Federal or State RUE grant holder, a pipeline ROW grant holder, an assignor or transferor, a designated operator or agent of the lessee or grant holder, or an applicant seeking to become one of the individuals listed in this definition.

[89 FR 31586, Apr. 24, 2024, as amended at 89 FR 71182, Oct. 3, 2024]