UPDATE 1-U.S. on verge of lifting 40-yr oil export ban

(Adds share movement)
WASHINGTON, Dec 16 (Reuters) - The United States appears on
the brink of ending a four-decade ban on most exports of crude
oil, which would mark an abrupt end to a years-long fight
triggered by the domestic shale boom.
Late on Tuesday evening congressional negotiators wrapped up
a sprawling deal to keep the U.S. government operating through
September. It included repealing the ban and granting temporary
tax breaks to boost wind and solar development, according to
lawmakers involved in the talks.
Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers will meet
separately on Wednesday to discuss the $1.15 trillion spending
bill that was negotiated in secretive talks by congressional
leaders over the last two weeks. Lawmakers hope to vote on it as
soon as Friday. If it passes both the House and the Senate, the
measure to keep the government funded through September would be
difficult for President Barack Obama to veto.
Allowing oil exports would be a win for the U.S. oil
industry and Republicans, who had argued that the ban was a
relic of the 1970s Arab oil embargo. With U.S. output now
falling as oil prices slump, analysts say it could be months or
years before exports flow in large volumes.
Shares of some U.S. energy companies edged up in premarket
trading. Exxon Mobil Corp (N:XOM) XOM.N rose less than 0.1 percent,
while Chesapeake Energy Corp (N:CHK) added 0.8 percent. Chevron Corp (N:CVX)
CVX.N gained 0.5 percent, and Marathon Oil Corp (N:MRO) MRO.N rose
0.3 percent.
Critics of the ban say eliminating it would help keep the
U.S. drilling boom alive by closing the gap which has existed
for years between cheaper domestic crude prices and higher
global rates, and also give U.S. allies alternatives to Russia
and OPEC for their oil supplies.
"Lifting the oil export ban is very important to our
industry to enable them to compete on a global basis," said
Senator John Hoeven. The Republican from oil-producing North
Dakota has pressured Congress to axe the trade restriction.
"If we always get a lower price than the rest of the world,
that obviously gives the advantage to OPEC and Russia," he said.
Many Democrats in the Senate, however, say lifting the ban
would put oil refining and shipbuilding jobs at risk and that
more drilling would harm the environment and increase the number
of trains carrying crude oil.
Republicans had made lifting the ban a top priority in the
bill and swapped it for measures Democrats wanted to reduce
carbon emissions and protect the environment.
While many Democrats, including President Obama, have
opposed lifting the ban, a drop in oil prices, which briefly
touched nearly 11-year lows this week below $40 a barrel, helped
ease their worries that doing so would boost gasoline prices for
consumers.
The bill, posted early on Wednesday morning, allows the U.S.
president to stop oil exports for one year if he or she declares
a national emergency, or if the administration decides that the
exports are causing a domestic oil shortage or raising U.S. oil
prices.