It’s not just willow: Oil and gas projects are back in a big way

The Mongstad refinery in Austrheim, Norway, Jan 23. The controversial Willow drilling plan in Alaska has drawn outrage, but it's just a small fraction of a rebound in oil and gas projects that are resurging globally. [Kyrre Lien/The New York Times]

When the Biden administration greenlighted the $8 billion Willow oil project on Alaska's North Slope last month, many decried the move as a betrayal of the United States' pledge to move away from fossil fuels in the fight against climate change.

But an analysis of global data shows that Willow represents a small fraction of hundreds of new oil and gas extraction projects approved in the past year across the world, including many more in the United States. And in the coming months, dozens of additional projects are expected to be approved.

The data reflect a surging fossil fuel industry that has rebounded to prepandemic levels of growth. Even though the past few years have seen many countries institute policies that encourage renewable energy, demand for fossil fuels remains high. Russia's invasion of Ukraine drove up oil prices, contributing to record profits for...

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