FALLS CHURCH, Va. – The Bureau of Land Management Eastern States Office today released the sale notice for competitive oil and gas lease sales in Michigan and Louisiana, scheduled for June 29, 2023. The sale will be held online at www.energy.net.

BLM will offer one parcel in Michigan totaling 40 acres and three parcels in Louisiana totaling 88.81 acres. The BLM evaluated the parcels under two environmental assessments with multiple opportunities for public engagement. Today’s notice starts a 30-day protest period that closes on June 14, 2023.

The sale notice, environmental review documents, and additional information including instruction for submitting a protest for the Michigan parcel is available online at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2020688/510. The same information for the Louisiana parcel is available at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2022413/510.

The notice incorporates recommendations from the Department of the Interior’s Report on the Federal Oil and Gas Leasing Program, as well as other reports issued by the Governmental Accountability Office and Congressional Budget Office. All parcels that are leased as part of an oil and gas lease sale include appropriate protections and stipulations to protect natural and cultural resources.

As authorized under the Inflation Reduction Act, BLM will apply a 16.67% royalty rate for any new leases from this sale. More information about the Act is available on BLM's online fact sheet.

Leasing is the first step in the process to develop federal oil and gas resources. Before development operations can begin, an operator must submit an application for permit to drill (APD) detailing development plans. The BLM reviews APDs, posts them for public review, conducts an environmental analysis, and coordinates with state partners and stakeholders.

Original source can be found here