California Energy Journal: Offshore Oil

DOJ Removes Sable Pipeline Dispute to Federal Court

Wed, 20 May 2026 21:09:16 GMT

The U.S. Department of Justice and Sable Offshore Corp. removed litigation over the restart of the Las Flores Pipeline System from California state court to federal court, according to E&E News, escalating an ongoing dispute over federal preemption and state permitting authority. The move escalates a dispute over whether federal national security authorities and interstate pipeline regulation can override state permitting and land-use requirements tied to the restart of offshore oil production.

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The U.S. Department of Justice and Sable filed a notice May 18 removing the case from Santa Barbara Superior Court after Judge Donna Geck denied Sable Offshore Corp.’s effort to rescind the preliminary injunction prohibiting the restart of the pipeline system.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued an order under the Defense Production Act directing Sable Offshore to restart the oil pipeline system. The order cited national security concerns and the need to strengthen domestic energy supply on the West Coast. Sable resumed pipeline operations shortly after the order was issued.

Sable has been working to restore production from the offshore fields and restart the Las Flores Pipeline System, arguing that federal regulatory actions and national security directives preempt additional state and local approvals.

In April, Judge Geck ruled that the federal order did not automatically invalidate the state court injunction. Geck also scheduled a May 22 hearing to consider whether Sable should be held in contempt for allegedly violating the injunction by restarting the pipeline.

Environmental groups have argued that Sable cannot legally operate the pipeline without securing county land-use permits and other state approvals. The groups said the case belongs in state court because it primarily concerns California permitting and land-use authority.

Sable and the federal government have countered that federal jurisdiction is appropriate because the case now involves federal national security determinations and interstate pipeline regulation.

In December 2025, the U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) confirmed the company’s determination that the pipeline qualifies as an interstate pipeline under the Pipeline Safety Act rather than as an intrastate public subject to state regulation. The agency then approved Sable’s restart plan for the pipeline system.

The removal of the case to federal court adds another layer to the broader legal conflict surrounding the restart of offshore oil production tied to the Santa Ynez Unit. Oil transportation through the system has continued while state, federal, and environmental litigation proceeds.

Case Against BOEM Challenging Sable Restart Thrown Out

Fri, 15 May 2026 23:09:09 GMT

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by two environmental groups challenging the restart of oil production on Sable Offshore Corp.’s three offshore platforms near Santa Barbara, ruling that the environmental groups lacked standing, according to Courthouse News.

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The Center for Biological Diversity and the Wishtoyo Foundation sued the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in April 2025, alleging that the agency violated the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and the Administrative Procedure Act by not requiring Sable to revise the Santa Ynez Unit’s development and production plans for the first of three offshore platforms that the company planned to restart.

The groups argued that the plans, originally approved in the 1970s and 1980s, were “woefully outdated” and did not reflect current environmental conditions or operational risks.

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California ruled that the organizations failed to demonstrate how BOEM’s decision caused them injury sufficient to establish standing.

The court also stated that the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act gives the Department of the Interior discretion over when to revisit previously approved development and production plans. The judge stated that BOEM had already conducted a review in its April 2025 decision and that the court was “powerless to compel the secretary to conduct another review….”

Under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, BOEM is required to seek input from local governments only for certain agency actions. The local governments, in turn, can then seek comments to include in their responses to BOEM.

The environmental groups may file an amended complaint, according to Courthouse News.

The three platforms are part of the Santa Ynez Unit, which has been shut since the 2015 Refugio oil spill. The Santa Ynez Unit also includes an onshore oil processing plant located in Las Flores Canyon, near Goleta, and the associated pipeline infrastructure.

California Seeks Preliminary Injunction to Stop Sable Pipeline Restart

Fri, 08 May 2026 16:02:06 GMT

California filed a motion for a preliminary injunction to stop Sable Offshore Corp.’s restart of the Las Flores Pipeline System serving the offshore Santa Ynez Unit. California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed the motion on May 1, 2026, asking the court to revoke the federal order to restart the pipeline and to block the transportation of oil through th…

BOEM Issues Final Environmental Review for Platform Gilda Fracking Proposal

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 20:09:00 GMT

On April 22, 2026, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) issued a final environmental impact statement (EIS) on a proposal to authorize well stimulation treatments, including fracking, on Platform Gilda offshore Ventura County.

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The EIA completes a fast-tracked federal review of the proposed treatments on up to 16 existing wells at the platform as …

Judge Upholds Injunction against Sable Oil Pipeline Restart

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 21:14:00 GMT

In a tentative ruling on April 17, 2026, a Santa Barbara County judge denied Sable Offshore Corp.’s effort to rescind the preliminary injunction prohibiting the restart of the Las Flores Pipeline System. The injunction against the Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) requires Sable to provide advance notice before restarting onshore pipeline operatio…

California Challenges Federal Offshore Fracking Review

Sat, 11 Apr 2026 04:10:00 GMT

California Attorney General Rob Bonta formally opposed an expedited federal environmental review that could authorize offshore hydraulic fracturing at Platform Gilda in the Santa Barbara Channel.

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The attorney general argued in a March 30, 2026 comment letter that the process violates federal law and longstanding court orders. “Curtailing procedural requi…

BOEM Moves to Fast-Track Environmental Review for Offshore Fracking at Platform Gilda

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 16:43:57 GMT

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has initiated a fast-tracked environmental review that could allow hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, at Platform Gilda in federal waters off California.

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In a March 18, 2026 notice of intent, BOEM said it will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) to evaluate a proposal to authorize well stimul…

California Sues to Block Federal Order Restarting Sable Pipeline

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 15:46:00 GMT

California has filed suit to block a federal order directing Sable Offshore Corp. to restart the oil pipeline system serving the offshore Santa Ynez Unit. The suit escalates a legal dispute over the Trump administration’s use of emergency powers to override state energy and environmental controls.

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The complaint challenges the March 13, 2026 order issued …

California Brings Multiple Legal Challenges to Block Sable Pipeline Restart

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 21:40:52 GMT

California launched a legal effort to stop Sable Offshore Corp.’s restart of the Las Flores Pipeline System serving the offshore Santa Ynez Unit. The response to the recent restart of the pipeline system could signal an escalating conflict between California and the Trump administration over federal emergency powers and state environmental authority.

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On …

Trump Administration Directs Sable to Restart Santa Ynez Unit Pipeline, Citing National Security

Tue, 17 Mar 2026 03:59:46 GMT

The Trump administration directed Sable Offshore Corp. on March 13, 2026 to restart the oil pipeline system serving the Santa Ynez Unit offshore oil field, citing national security concerns and the need to strengthen domestic energy supply on the West Coast.

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Under the directive, Sable began transporting oil from the Santa Ynez Unit through the Las Flores…

DOJ Says Defense Production Act Order Could Override State Barriers to Oil Production and Pipeline Operation

Sat, 07 Mar 2026 01:13:00 GMT

The U.S. Department of Justice issued a legal opinion concluding that a presidential order on energy production issued under the Defense Production Act (DPA) could preempt conflicting state laws under the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause. The U.S. Department of Energy requested the opinion in connection with Sable Offshore Corp.’s ongoing efforts to rest…

Timeline: Sable Offshore and the Las Flores Pipeline System

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 05:14:08 GMT

2015 – Refugio Oil Spill Shuts Down Santa Ynez Unit

May 19, 2015
A crude oil pipeline owned by Plains All American Pipeline (Line 901) ruptures near Refugio State Beach, spilling about 142,000 gallons of oil along the Santa Barbara coast.

Following the spill, ExxonMobil suspends production from the Santa Ynez Unit (SYU) offshore platforms and the Las Flore…

Court Upholds Injunction Blocking Restart of Sable Offshore Pipeline

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 03:56:30 GMT

On February 27, 2026, Santa Barbara County Judge Donna Geck intends to uphold a preliminary injunction that blocks Sable’s restart of the Las Flores Pipeline system.

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Sable challenged a July 2025 preliminary injunction against the Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM), finding that it likely violated state law in its approval of a waiver that allowed Sa…

BOEM Launches Environmental Review for Potential California Offshore Lease Sales

Sat, 28 Feb 2026 04:34:00 GMT

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced that it will begin preparing a programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) for potential oil and gas lease sales off the coast of California. The review encompasses the Northern, Central and Southern California Planning Areas of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

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The action, published as …

Feds Subpoenaed Sable over Inside Information, Records Show

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:33:49 GMT

Sable Offshore Corp. received subpoenas in December 2025 from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), seeking documents related to trading in the company’s securities and issues raised in an October 31, 2025 investigative report by Hunterbrook Media. The subpoenas add…

Federal Review Opens Path to New Oil Drilling Off the Coast of California

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 05:10:26 GMT

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) on January 26, 2026 issued two Calls for Information and Nominations covering previously protected federal waters off Southern and Central California. The notices begin a preliminary review under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and invite public and industry input on environmental conditions, potential …

California Sues Trump Administration over Sable Pipeline Approval

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 17:10:36 GMT

California is suing the federal government for taking regulatory authority over Sable Offshore Corp.’s Las Flores Pipeline System. The pipeline, which was shut down following the 2015 Refugio oil spill, is critical to restarting oil production in the Santa Ynez Unit.

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In a petition filed on January 23, 2026, California challenged three actions by the fede…

Court Rejects Emergency Appeal to Stop Pipeline Restart

Fri, 02 Jan 2026 21:25:00 GMT

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected an attempt to stay the approval of Sable Offshore Corp.’s pipeline restart plan. The lawsuit will proceed on an expedited basis with opening briefs due January 26, 2025.

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Environmental groups sued the Trump administration on December 24, 2025 over its approval of Sable’s request for an “emergency” waiver from fe…

Feds Grant Sable “Emergency” Waiver for Pipeline Restart, Environmental Groups Sue

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 20:30:21 GMT

The Trump administration approved Sable Offshore Corp.’s request for an “emergency” waiver from federal safety regulations over the restart of the Las Flores Pipeline System. Environmental groups then sued the administration over the approval, contending that the administration bypassed federal requirements in its approval of the pipeline restart plan a…

Federal Regulator Approves Sable Pipeline Restart Plans

Tue, 23 Dec 2025 23:58:03 GMT

The federal regulator approved Sable Offshore Corp.’s restart plan for its Las Flores Pipeline System, a critical step in restarting oil production in the Santa Ynez Unit. The pipeline system connects the Santa Ynez Unit to the Pentland Station terminal in Kern County.

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The U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administ…