First oil sale made in California after Trump offshore drilling to resume in state

The first oil sale in California was made after President Trump ordered  offshore drilling to resume in the state.

After Trump's orders last month, offshore oil drilling near Santa Barbara, on the state's Central Coast, resumed for the first time since a major 2015 crude oil spill, local TV station ABC10 reported Tuesday. 

Since the pipeline rupture that caused the spill occurred, the company Sable Offshore Corporation has been prohibited from producing due to various lawsuits and a legal fight with California.

Sable announced over the weekend that it had made its first crude oil sale to Chevron.

According to Sable, production is currently through Platform Harmony, producing around 22,000 barrels of oil per day. The company said that two additional oil rigs – Platform Heritage and Platform Hondo – will resume operations soon.

The oil, which is extracted through platforms sitting on federal waters, is transported via the Santa Ynez pipeline from the Santa Barbara area to the Central Valley. It will be refined at a Chevron California refinery.

Chevron told the news outlet that it is still testing crude oil from Sable, but that the additional supply of in-state crude oil will assist Chevron in producing lower-cost gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel for California consumers.

“Having local crude oil production is very important to energy prices but also to energy security of supply,” Chevron spokesperson Ross Allen said.