White House Orders Abandoned Offshore Oil Wells Plugged as Oil Men Cry 3.43K Jeff Neumann 09/16/10 04:28AM Filed to: Burdens Burdens oil spill gulf of mexico deepwater horizon getty images The Obama administration yesterday said 3,500 abandoned Gulf oil wells must be plugged by the companies that abandoned them. But American Petroleum Institute President Jack Gerard said, "This is not the time" to ask more of struggling oil companies.