The top U.S. drilling regulator said Tuesday that the Obama administration hopes to lift a freeze on deepwater oil and natural-gas drilling well before its scheduled November 30 expiration date. Michael Bromwich, the director of the Interior Department's Bureau of ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement, said he and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar are gathering information to decide whether to revise or lift the ban, which has shut down drilling at 33 ocean wells since the disastrous BP (British Petroleum) spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Bromwich said officials hope to feel comfortable enough with safety improvements so the moratorium can be lifted “significantly in advance of November 30.” He is scheduled to host a series of public forums on the gulf coast starting Wednesday in New Orleans, Louisiana.
