Montana/Dakotas State Office
| Contacts: | Mel Lloyd 406-896-5260 |
BLM Announces January Oil and Gas Lease Sale Results
Bonus bids at the Bureau of Land Management’s January 24 oil and gas lease sale in Billings totaled $35,975,750.
The highest single-parcel bid was $4,096,000 submitted by Kodiak Oil & Gas of Denver, Colorado for a 640-acre U.S. Forest Service parcel in McKenzie County, North Dakota. Continental Resources Inc. of Enid, Oklahoma submitted the highest per-acre bid at $10,600 per acre for a 40-acre U.S. Forest Service parcel also located in McKenzie County.
All 59 parcels offered, totaling just over 14,760 acres, were located in North Dakota and received bids. Last July, the BLM Montana/Dakotas oil and gas sale produced a record overall bonus bid totaling over $66 million, with nearly twice the acreage offered compared to this sale.
Additional information regarding competitive sale lists, detailed results of sales or the leasing process is available by writing the Bureau of Land Management, 5001 Southgate Dr., Billings, Mont. 59101, by calling (406) 896-5004, or at www.blm.gov/mt.
Oil and gas leasing is driven by consumer demand, and competitive oil and gas lease sales are conducted several times per year at BLM’s Montana/Dakotas State Office. Receipts from federal oil and gas leases are shared with the state or county where the lands are located. All leases are issued for a 10-year term.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Montana/Dakotas State Office 5001 Southgate Dr. Billings, MT 59101