BLM to hold oil and gas lease sale beginning March 24, 2020
Organization
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Reno, Nev.— The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is holding a multi-day competitive oil and gas lease sale beginning on Tuesday, March 24. The agency will offer 45 parcels for lease totaling approximately 73,591 acres in Lander and Nye Counties in Nevada. The BLM will hold the lease sale online at www.energynet.com.
The open bidding period for each day will begin at 9:00 a.m. Central Standard Time (CST) or 7:00 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time (PDT). Each parcel will have its own unique open bidding period, with start and stop times clearly identified on the auction website. The open bidding period for each parcel will run for one hour from start to finish, and bids will only be accepted during a parcel’s open bidding period. Parcels may be viewed online at the EnergyNet website approximately 10 business days after the posting of this sale notice on the BLM website. The publication of the sale notice initiates a 10-day protest period that will close on February 18, 2020.
Responsible energy development includes consideration of parcels nominated for leasing as well as potential resource impacts for each parcel. Additional environmental review will take place during processing of an Application for Permit to Drill, when site-specific Conditions of Approval will be placed on the permit in addition to the stipulations already attached to the lease at the time of sale.
The sale results will be posted on the www.energynet.com website and the BLM Nevada State Office website https://www.blm.gov/programs/energy-and-minerals/oil-and-gas/leasing/regional-lease-sales/nevada. Paper copies are available for viewing or purchase at the BLM Nevada State Office Information Access Center. The next oil and gas sale is scheduled for June 9, 2020.
Background
By statute, the BLM is required to offer quarterly oil and gas leases sales of available federal lands. BLM state offices conduct lease sales quarterly when parcels are available for lease. These lease sales represent parcels that cleared environmental review and public comment. The BLM issues both competitive and non-competitive leases for a 10-year period. The leases are a contract to explore and develop any potential oil and gas. The leases may earn an extension if the lessee establishes production, otherwise they pay annual rentals.
The BLM generated a record $1.1 billion from 28 oil and gas lease sales in Fiscal Year (FY) 2018. The oil and gas industry on public lands in Nevada contributed $3.1 million in total economic output in FY 2019. Revenues from onshore oil and gas production on federal lands directly fund the U.S. Treasury, state budgets and support public education, infrastructure improvements, and other state-determined priorities. Nearly half the bid and rental receipts from lease sales go to the state of Nevada.
-BLM-
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.