U.S. holds largest offshore area auction

HOUSTON, March 21 (Xinhua) -- The United States held an auction Wednesday in New Orleans in the south state of Louisiana for an area in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico, opening new doors for the offshore sector.

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) held the auction for more than 77 million acres (about 311,000 square km) in federal waters offshore Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas for oil and gas exploration and development.

The scope of the auction makes it the largest offshore auction in U.S. history.

The BOEM estimated the reserve potential in the auction area ranges between 210 million barrels to 1.12 billion barrels and between 55 billion and 4.42 trillion cubic feet for natural gas.

In support of President Donald Trump's America-First Offshore Energy Strategy, Deputy Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt announced last month that his department would offer the region for oil and gas exploration and development.

The region-wide lease sale includes all available unleased areas in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

In 2017, offshore leases helped the U.S. Department of the Interior raise a billion U.S. dollars more in energy revenue than in 2016.

The federal government estimated total U.S. crude production will reach 11 million barrels per day by the fourth quarter this year, of which around 15 percent would produce from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

The U.S. Department of the Interior is responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. As an agency within the department, BOEM exercises the oil, gas, and renewable energy-related management functions, including resources evaluation, planning, and leasing. Enditem