Biden cancels Alaska oil leases, protects millions of acres in Arctic Refuge
The Biden Administration and Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland have canceled seven oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska, along with protecting 13 million acres of the National Petroleum Reserve.
ANWR is one of the largest areas of pristine wildlife habitat in America and is home to indigenous peoples. But it also sits atop around ten billion barrels of oil, and thus, for decades, Republicans and oil companies have been trying to drill in it.
For the most part, these attempts were refused until 2017. At that time, a Republican Congress passed – and President Trump signed – a bill giving huge tax breaks to the wealthy, adding $1.5 trillion to the deficit and raising taxes on the middle class. However, this tax bill also opened up 1.5 million acres in ANWR to oil drilling.
On January 6, 2021 (yes, that January 6), the US government held a rushed oil and gas lease sale and issued 10-year leases on 430,000 acres. But 15 days later, on President Biden’s first day in office, he issued an executive order suspending those leases, stating that they did not undergo proper environmental review.
Today’s action permanently cancels those suspended leases, finding that they did not undergo proper review under the National Environmental Policy Act. However, two of the three purchasers had already requested that their leases be canceled and refunded, and the only remaining holder of these leases was the state of Alaska itself.
In addition to canceling the leases, the Department of the Interior will now give maximum protection to 13 million acres within the 23.6 million acre National Petroleum Reserve – Alaska (NPRA), which sits to the west of ANWR. And it will prohibit any new leasing on 10.6 million acres, over 40% of the NPRA’s total area.
The newly protected areas are listed as “Special Areas,” a designation afforded to “areas with significant surface value” within the NPRA. Here’s a map showing them in Northwest Alaska:
This news comes months after Biden approved the “Willow project,” a large oil project within the NPRA, a move opposed by people who would prefer the planet to remain livable rather than turn into a burning hellscape in the name of oil industry profits. Today’s action does not reverse that approval – Willow will be allowed to continue as planned.
Electrek’s Take
Biden has been getting a lot of flack from environmentalists for allowing oil & gas lease sales, and this flack is deserved. If we want to avoid climate change, we have absolutely zero options other than keeping oil in the ground where it belongs. If we allowed all currently owned and explored oil reserves to be drilled and burned, we would overshoot necessary carbon targets by around 4x (see Bill McKibben’s excellent article “Global Warming’s Terrifying New Math” about this).
That said – and this has not been a popular take among environmentalists (of which I am one) – I never found these oil leases to be all that disturbing. Because I kind of thought they would (or at least must) eventually be canceled, likely before they got very far into construction. And they did. So that’s good.
The government has been holding plenty of oil and gas lease sales lately, even while touting historic climate actions. This is dumb, and they shouldn’t hold these leases. However, we’ve also seen instances of companies not bothering to show up to purchase these leases, and all major US banks have given up on funding Arctic oil leases anyway. Everyone knows the oil companies have more than enough leases already and probably won’t ever be able to use them all – at least if the health of the planet matters to anyone (jury’s out on that one).
So these lease sales are kind of a waste of time for everyone involved, in my opinion. Instead of spending time leasing and unleasing land, we should work harder on protecting more of it. This is a good start, but I’d like to see more leases canceled – even on land that’s already being used for production, like Los Angeles wants to do.
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The Stripe logo on a smartphone with U.S. dollar banknotes in the background.
Budrul Chukrut | SOPA Images | LightRocket via Getty Images
Stripe cut 300 jobs, representing about 3.5% of its workforce, mostly in product, engineering and operations, CNBC has confirmed.
The payments company, valued at about $70 billion in the private markets, still expects to increase headcount by 10,000 by the end of the year, which would be a 17% increase, and is “not slowing down hiring,” according to a memo to staff from Chief People Office Rob McIntosh. Business Insider reported earlier on the cuts and the memo.
A Stripe spokesperson also confirmed to CNBC that a cartoon image of a duck with text that read, “US-Non-California Duck,” was accidentally attached as a PDF to emails sent to some of the employees who were laid off. Some of the emails mistakenly provided affected employees with an incorrect termination date, the spokesperson said.
McIntosh sent a follow-up email to staffers apologizing for the “notification error” and “any confusion it caused.”
“Corrected and full notifications have since been sent to all impacted Stripes,” he wrote.
In 2022, Stripe cut roughly 1,100 jobs, or 14% of its workers, downsizing alongside most of the tech industry, as soaring inflation and rising interest rates forced companies to focus on profits over growth. The Information reported that Stripe had a few dozen layoffs in its recruiting department in 2023.
Stripe’s valuation sank from a peak of $95 billion in 2021 to $50 billion in 2023, before reportedly rebounding to $70 billion last year as part of a secondary share sale. The company ranked third on last year’s CNBC Disruptor 50 list.
In October, Stripe agreed to pay $1.1 billion for crypto startup Bridge Network, whose technology is focused on making it easy for businesses to transact using digital currencies.
Brothers Patrick and John Collison, who founded Stripe in 2010, have intentionally steered clear of the public markets and have given no indication that an offering is on the near-term horizon. Total payment volume at the company surpassed $1 trillion in 2023.
WATCH: Early Bridge investor weighs in on $1.1 billion Stripe deal
Thinking about upgrading your EV? Rivian (RIVN) launched a new promo on Tuesday, offering up to $6,000 to upgrade your R1S or R1T. Here’s how you can snag some savings.
Rivian R1S and R1T upgrade deal offers up to $6,000
Rivian delivered over 51,500 vehicles last year as the EV maker gains momentum. Although it was only slightly higher than the ~50,100 delivered in 2023, Rivian is expected to see even more growth this year.
After shutting down its Normal, IL manufacturing plant last April and renegotiating supplier contracts, Rivian has seen “significant cost improvements,” according to CEO RJ Scaringe.
Rivian also began delivering its next-gen R1S and R1T models last year. The new Large and Max battery packs have redesigned modules and more efficient packaging, “making them easier to manufacture and service.” For example, Rivian’s new EVs use seven ECUs, down from 17 in the first-generation R1T and R1S.
With new plant upgrades, reworked supplier contracts, and more efficient vehicles, Rivian is now passing the savings on to customers.
Rivian introduced a new promo on Tuesday, offering up to $6,000 to upgrade your R1T or R1S. The bonus amount varies by trim:
- Tri with Max battery: $6,000 USD / CAD 8,600
- Dual with Max battery and Performance upgrade: $4,500 USD / CAD 6,500
- Dual with Max battery: $3,000 USD / CAD 4,300
The offer is for current R1T or R1S owners or lessees in the US and Canada. Rivian launched the new promo on January 21, and it runs through March 31, 2025.
After you purchase or lease a qualifying vehicle, Rivian will apply a discount toward the MSRP. You must take delivery by March 31, 2025. In the fine print, Rivian stated, “You must request a trade-in estimate to qualify for this offer, but trade-in of a vehicle is not required.”
Any other models are excluded from the offer. These include Dual Standard configurations, Dual with Large battery configurations, custom builds, demo vehicles, and pre-owned vehicles.
The new offer follows Rivian’s previous upgrade promo introduced last October, giving qualifying gas-powered vehicle owners or lessees up to $3,000.
Check out the Rivian R1 Shop to view eligible models. You can see eligible Rivian R1S here and R1T models here.
Electrek’s Take
Rivian’s R1S was already the tenth best-selling electric vehicle in the US last year, with nearly 27,000 models sold. With more driving range and power at a lower cost, the electric SUV could see even more demand in 2025.
Then again, with the arrival of new luxury electric SUVs, like the Jeep Wagoneer S and Volvo EX90, Rivian will face more competition in the US.
Rivian’s latest promo comes as the Company looks to carry the momentum from the end of 2024 into the new year. The EV maker is offering other deals, including 1.99% APR for 60 months on the R1 Dual with a Max Battery and Performance upgrade.
Even if you are not eligible for the promo, we can still help you find deals on Rivian’s electric SUV in your area. You can use our links below to view offers on the Rivian R1S and R1T near you today.
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