Wednesday, the Bureau of Land Management announced its Notice of Sale for the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). The Federal Register Notice is scheduled to publish on December 7, setting up the lease sale to be conducted on January 6, 2021 via video livestream.
This lease sale was directed by Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-97) and signed into law by President Trump on December 22, 2017. The Tax Act directed at least two area-wide lease sales of not less than 400,000 acres each within the Coastal Plain.
“Congress directed us to hold lease sales in the ANWR Coastal Plain, and we have taken a significant step in announcing the first sale in advance of the December 2021 deadline set by law,” stated BLM Alaska State Director Chad Padgett. “Oil and gas from the Coastal Plain is an important resource for meeting our Nation’s long-term energy demands and will help create jobs and economic opportunities. The law makes oil and gas development one of the purposes of the refuge, clearly directing the Secretary, acting through the Bureau of Land Management, to carry out an aggressive, competitive exploration and development program for the potentially energy rich Coastal Plain.”
The January 2021 Coastal Plain Alaska Oil and Gas Lease Sale will include tracts and acreage identified in the Detailed Statement of Sale and available for leasing pursuant to the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program August 2020 Record of Decision (ROD).
The ROD determined where and under what terms and conditions leasing will occur in the Coastal Plain, which left ninety-two percent of the refuge completely off-limits to development. The ROD also established numerous required operating procedures and lease stipulations to mitigate impacts to important resources, including extensive protections for wildlife such as caribou and polar bears.
The opening and reading of the bids will be available via video livestreaming at www.blm.gov/live. The Detailed Statement of Sale includes a description of the areas the BLM is offering for lease, as well as the lease terms, conditions, special stipulations, required operating procedures, and directions about how to submit bids.
The Detailed Statement of Sale will be posted online at: https://www.blm.gov/alaska on Monday, December 7, 2020. Copies will be available from the BLM Alaska Public Information Center (Public Room), 222 West 7th Avenue, Mailstop 13, Anchorage, Alaska 99513-7504; telephone 907-271-5960. Please call to make an appointment.