Several U.S. states will hold oil and gas lease sales via EnergyNet in January, with most of the bids due before January 20 when President-elect Joe Biden is scheduled to take office.
Biden's energy plan favors renewables development and promises a ban on new oil and gas leases on federal lands.
Alaska, New Mexico, Texas, and North Dakota plan oil and gas lease sales this month, according to the EnergyNet schedule.
The Alaska Department of Natural Resources will be offering 284 tracts covering an estimated 867,841 acres in the Beaufort Sea area, in an online sealed bidding that ends on January 7. Alaska DNR is also offering oil and gas lease sales in the North Slope area, with bidding ending on January 7.
BLM is holding on January 14 an online sale of 37 parcels covering 6,850.72 acres in New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas.
The Texas General Land Office will hold on January 19 an oil and gas lease sale, offering 66 Tracts covering 22,500.607 net mineral acres available for lease.
The North Dakota Department of Trust Lands will hold an oil and gas lease sale between January 26 and February 2, according to the EnergyNet schedule.
Last month, the latest oil and gas lease sale in Colorado generated just $630,556 for 32 parcels totaling 43,438 acres, the Bureau of Land Management said. The BLM had offered 42 parcels in this lease sale round, but there were few takers. The highest price the BLM got in the round was $382 per acre. Based on the total sold and the total revenue, the average price for the acreage was just $14.52.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) has said in a recent report that a ban on new federal oil and gas development-as proposed by Biden-would result in job losses, weaker energy security, and an increased reliance on oil imports.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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Tsvetana is a writer for Oilprice.com with over a decade of experience writing for news outlets such as iNVEZZ and SeeNews. More