Montana/Dakotas News Release
Date: April 15, 2009 April Oil and Gas Lease Sale ResultsBonus bids at the Bureau of Land Management’s April 14 oil and gas lease sale in Billings reached $13,736,225. CP Energy, Inc., of Layfayette, La., and Slawson Exploration Co., Inc., of Wichita, Kan., together bid $6,701,200 for leasing rights on a 1,523-acre parcel in Mountrail County, N.D. That was the highest total bid of the sale. The highest per-acre bid was $4,900 from Missouri River Royalty Corp. of Bismarck for a 992-acre parcel also in Mountrail County. Of the 67 parcels offered, 51 were in Montana and 16 were in North Dakota. All of the North Dakota parcels and 45 of the Montana parcels received bids. Additional information regarding competitive sale lists, detailed results of sales or the leasing process is available by writing the Bureau of Land Management, 5001 Southgate Dr., Billings, Mont. 59101, by calling (406) 896-5004, or at www.blm.gov/mt. Oil and gas leasing is driven by consumer demand, and competitive oil and gas lease sales are conducted at least four times per year at BLM’s Montana State Office. Receipts from federal oil and gas leases are shared with the state or county where the lands are located. All leases are issued for a 10-year term. Potential environmental effects that could result from exploration and development are analyzed before any leases are offered for sale. All leases come with conditions on oil and gas activities to protect the environment that can include limits on when drilling can occur or restrictions on surface occupancy. Once an operator proposes exploration or development on a BLM-issued lease, further environmental analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act is conducted to determine the site-specific need for various types of impact-limiting or mitigation measures. In addition, many operators routinely use Best Management Practices such as remote monitoring of producing wells to minimize surface impacts. ###
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