A proposed version of the next five-year offshore leasing programme will be released by the US Department of the Interior by the end of June.

Testifying before the US Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources, US Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said the newest version of the National Outer Continental Shelf Oil & Gas Leasing Program will be released no later than 30 June — the expiry date of the 2017-2022 leasing plan.

However, the proposed version will not go into effect at that time, leaving the US without an offshore leasing programme for an undetermined period of time.