"The Trump administration is moving full-steam ahead to allow more drilling for oil and natural gas on public lands — despite the precipitous drop in petroleum prices now undercutting their value.

The coronavirus pandemic has triggered one of the steepest slides in oil prices in history, with the U.S. energy sector being hit both by an expected surge in production from Saudi Arabia and Russia and a drop in global demand for fuel as airlines cancel flights and factories suspend production in an effort to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Yet the viral pandemic is not stopping the Trump administration from selling off the right to drill for more oil and gas while prices remain so low, meaning the government is unlikely to reap the highest market price available for such public assets."

Dino Grandoni reports for the Washington Post March 23, 2020. [2]