U.S. Cuts Royalty Payments for Drillers on Utah Federal Land (2)

The Trump administration has granted at least 76 petitions to cut royalty payments for oil and natural gas produced on public land in Utah -- a move condemned by critics as encouraging production the market doesn’t need.

The Bureau of Land Management approved all 76 petitions it received for leases in Utah since May 1, according to an online government database. The approvals temporarily lower royalty rates so that oil companies can pay the federal government as little as 2.5% the value of oil and natural gas extracted from the tracts, instead of the usual 12.5% rate.

Data on royalty ...