Offshore staff

NEW ORLEANS -- Approximately 40% of the tracts receiving bids in Central Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 205 are in ultra deepwater – greater than 5,249 ft (1,600 m) water depth.

The lease sale held on Tuesday attracted $2,904,321,011 in high bids, the second highest in US leasing history, according to the MMS. Eighty-four companies issued 1,428 bids on 723 tracts, for a total of $ 5,245,583,944. The sale offered 5,359 tracts comprising about 28.7 million acres offshore Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.

"Today's historic sale emphasizes the Gulf's strategic value for America's energy security and the significant economic benefits of environmentally safe oil and gas production for the nation and the Gulf states," says Dirk Kempthorne, secretary of the interior.

Developing the wining tracts could result in the production of 776 MMbbl to 1.3 Bbbl of oil and 3.2 to 5.2 tcf of natural gas, according to Interior officials.

The deepest tract to receive a bid was Amery Terrace in block 206 in 3,398 m (11,148 ft) of water. The highest bid received on a block was $90,488,445 submitted by Shell Offshore Inc. for Walker Ridge block 7. Shell submitted the highest number of high bids (69), total bids (94), highest sum of high bids ($554.6 million), and the highest sum of total bids ($650 million).

"MMS expected the deepwater and ultra deepwater areas of the Central Gulf to receive a high level of interest in this sale," says Randall Luthi, director of the MMS.

10/4/2007