DENVER - Today, the Bureau of Land Management Colorado State Office sold 17 parcels totaling 16,447 acres for $90,943 including rentals and fees at its quarterly oil and gas lease sale. The highest per-acre price was for an 880-acre parcel in San Miguel County, sold to Retamco Operating, Inc. for $10 per acre.
Under authority granted the BLM by Congress in the 2015 National Defense Authorization Act and in the Code of Federal Regulations, BLM Colorado conducted the lease sale online via www.energynet.com. Each parcel had its own bidding period that lasted two hours, and the public could observe the sale in real time by logging on to the website.
A lease is the first step before eventually applying to develop and produce oil and gas from the public mineral estate. Additional planning, environmental analysis and public input must occur before drilling can begin. If drilling occurs, every lease will require reclamation and contain standard terms and stipulations designed to protect air, water, wildlife, and historic and cultural resources.
In Fiscal Year 2016, oil and gas development on public lands directly contributed $796 million to Colorado’s economy. BLM Colorado received more than $98 million in federal revenues, including royalties, rents and bonus bids, from oil and gas development on public lands. The State of Colorado receives 49 percent of these revenues. Statewide, more than 22,900 jobs are tied to mineral and energy development on public lands.
For information about BLM Colorado’s oil and gas lease sales, visit: https://www.blm.gov/programs/energy-and-minerals/oil-and-gas/leasing/regional-lease-sales/colorado.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
