The Bureau of Land Management Wyoming announced today that it plans to offer 212 oil and gas lease parcels totaling about 322,000 acres at its September 2019 quarterly lease sale.
In coordination with the State of Wyoming and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, the BLM is deferring one parcel containing 2,520 acres within the Red Desert to Hoback mule deer migration corridor – meaning the parcel is not currently being considered for lease. This step is consistent with Secretarial Order 3362 on improving habitat quality in western big-game winter range.
Wyoming is one of the country’s top energy producers on public lands. In 2018, BLM Wyoming raised nearly $117 million through oil and gas lease sales. Nearly half the revenue from each lease sale goes directly to the State of Wyoming and, when leasing results in production, royalties from production are also shared with the state. The revenue supports public education, infrastructure improvements and other state-determined priorities. The remainder of the revenue from onshore oil and gas production on federal lands directly funds the U.S. Treasury.
The BLM is a key contributor to the Trump Administration’s America-First Energy Plan, an all-of-the-above plan that includes oil and gas, coal, strategic minerals, and renewable sources such as wind, geothermal and solar – all of which can be produced on public lands.
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 contain 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 on the parcel, pending further site-specific approvals. The leases may earn an extension if the lessee establishes production; otherwise, the lessee must pay annual rentals.
Public Comments
A 30-day comment period for the proposal begins today and will close on June 15, 2019. To comment on the sale or learn more about the areas proposed for lease, please visit the ePlanning site at https://go.usa.gov/xmP8w. It includes the lease sale’s environmental assessment, lists and maps of the parcels, and the attached stipulations, as well as a portal to provide public comments.