Following an injunction from the Western District of Louisiana, today the Bureau of Land Management New Mexico State Office issued two final Environmental Assessments and the sale notice for the June 2022 Competitive Oil and Gas Lease Sale.
Today’s notice incorporates recommendations from the Department of the Interior’s Report on the Federal Oil and Gas Leasing Program, as well as other reports issued by the Governmental Accountability Office and Congressional Budget Office.
The BLM is applying a first-ever increased royalty rate of 18.75% for the leases sold in the current competitive lease sales, in keeping with rates charged by States and private landowners.
The BLM-New Mexico State Office will move forward with the Proposed Action, as analyzed in the environmental assessments (DOI-BLM-NM-P000-2021-0001-EA and DOI-BLM-NM-0040-2021-0033-EA), by offering six parcels totaling 535.72 acres in Chaves and Lea counties in New Mexico and Dewey County in Oklahoma. The parcels will be offered at the online oil and gas lease sale scheduled for June 16, 2022; sale can be accessed at www.energynet.com; the parcels may also be viewed on the EnergyNet website approximately 10 days after today’s posting of the Notice of Competitive Lease Sale on the BLM-New Mexico oil and gas web page at https://www.blm.gov/programs/energy-and-minerals/oil-and-gas/leasing/regional-lease-sales/new-mexico.
Additionally, today’s posting of the sale notice initiates a 30-day public protest period that ends on May 18, 2022. Protests on the offered parcel may only be submitted through email at blm_nm_q12022protest@blm.gov; the subject line must read: “June 2022 Protest.” The BLM must receive all protests by 4:30 p.m., on May 18, 2022, and as stated can only accept emailed protests.
Original source can be found here.
