U.S. Interior Department wants more oil drilling, expedite ANWR permits

Three polar bears are seen on the Beaufort Sea coast within the 1002 Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in this undated handout photo provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Alaska Image Library on December 21, 2005. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Alaska Image Library/Handout via REUTERS

(Reuters) - The Department of the Interior, the U.S. government's second largest revenue generator behind the IRS, is trying to be a better business partner to oil companies to curb falling revenues, Vincent DeVito, energy advisory to the Secretary of the Interior, said on Thursday.

The department plans to expedite permitting on drilling in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska, DeVito said at the S&P Global Platts Energy outlook in New York. Expediting the process would not be at the expense of environmental stewardship, he said.

(Reporting by Jessica Resnick-Ault, writing by Scott DiSavinoEditing by Chizu NomiyamaEditing by Chizu Nomiyama)