Armstrong Energy, Repsol, ConocoPhillips among winning bidders
The State of Alaska held a record-breaking oil and gas North Slope lease sale on Dec. 6, netting competitive bids from investors around the world.
The Division of Oil and Gas reported that it had received 143 bids from companies and investors seeking oil and gas leases on state lands during the division’s annual North Slope, Beaufort Sea, and North Slope Foothills areawide oil and gas lease sales. Total winning bids totaled nearly $21.2 million.
Ranked by dollar amount, this North Slope areawide sale is the third largest of its kind since 1998, when areawide oil and gas leasing began, Alaska’s Division of Oil and Gas reported. By bid value, it is the largest sale since 1998, netting an average of $110 per acre.
“I am particularly pleased to see Repsol E&P adding to its promising North Slope portfolio and showing strong interest in exploration south of its existing leases in the Pikka Unit,”Alaska Governor Bill Walker said in a statement. “We are open for business.”
North Slope sale biggest
In the North Slope sale, the division received 124 bids on 103 tracts for a total of 179,680 acres, with winning bids exceeding $19.9 million.
“The surge of interest from companies that have been exploring on our lands over the last decade indicates a positive direction for the oil industry on the North Slope,” said Natural Resources Commissioner Andy Mack.
Beaufort Sea nets $1.3 million
In the Beaufort Sea sale, the division received 19 bids on 16 tracts totaling 37,771 acres, with winning bids totaling nearly $1.3 million. The division did not receive any bids for lease tracts in the North Slope Foothills.
Alaska’s Division of Oil and Gas conducts a program of regularly scheduled competitive oil and gas lease sales on state lands. A new Five-Year Oil and Gas Leasing Program is submitted to the Alaska State Legislature each January. Competitive oil and gas lease sales are held in the already-producing North Slope, Beaufort Sea and Cook Inlet areas.