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Steam Injection Operations at Midway-Sunset Oilfield near Taft. |
California is the nation's fourth largest producer of oil and gas from federal lands. In 2007, production from onshore public lands totaled more than 17.5 million barrels of oil, along with 4.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas. Royalties paid to the United States amounted to approximately $91 million for oil, plus an additional $4.1 million for natural gas. Each year, half of all revenues generated are distributed to the State of California.
Most of the oil and gas leasing and development on public lands occur in central California, on lands managed by the BLM's Bakersfield Field Office.
With the approval of the Energy Policy Act in August, 2005, BLM assumed management of the Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 2 (Buena Vista Field) in Kern County from the Department of Energy. Following completion of an update to land use planning documents, BLM offered an additional 2,500 acres of unleased federal lands for competitive sale on September 13, 2006, in one of the most successful Oil and Gas lease auctions ever held (on the basis of bonus bid $ per acre).
BLM typically holds quarterly lease sales offering public land mineral resources that may be of interest to industry for future exploration. For more information, click on the In The Spotlight or Leasing links on this page.
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