A US court has granted the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) more time to assess how endangered species should be protected from oil exploration and drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

According to the US Energy Information Administration, the Gulf of Mexico’s federal offshore oil production accounts for 14% of total US crude oil production.

In August 2024, Earthjustice, Sierra Club and Friends of the Earth, among others, won a case at the US District Court to protect endangered and threatened marine species from offshore oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

The judge ruled that the required assessment – known as the “biological opinion” and prepared by the NMFS to ensure that Gulf fossil fuel exploration and drilling companies offer the necessary environmental protections – was flawed. The judge also said the assessment violated the Endangered Species Act.

It ruled that the current biological opinion would remain in place until 20 December 2024, by which time the NMFS must prepare...