The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced it will publish the Final Notice of Sale for Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale 261 in the Federal Register on August 25, 2023.
BOEM plans to conduct the lease sale on September 27, 2023, and it will offer approximately 12,395 blocks on approximately 67 million acres on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf in the Western, Central, and Eastern Planning Areas in the Gulf of Mexico.
National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) President Erik Milito issued the following statement:
“The Gulf of Mexico is a long-standing and vital source of reliable, affordable, and environmentally responsible energy that is crucial to the wellbeing of our nation. The removal of nearly 11 million acres and the application of needless restrictive measures, included as part of the Stipulated Stay agreement, poses a real barrier to America’s energy production capabilities, at a time when they’re needed more than ever, with inflation driving up the costs of everything for Americans including gasoline at the pump.
"Furthermore, the unnecessary gap in the leasing program is eroding long term confidence and certainty in the Gulf of Mexico. This poses a threat to the energy, economic, and environmental benefits the Gulf has provided for nation for decades.
"We are a foundation of hundreds of thousands of jobs while being a source of some of the world’s least carbon-intensive barrels. We can provide much for a nation, but the government needs to be a partner to utilize this national strategic benefit."