Bidding Open in Alaska’s First-ever Online Oil and Gas Lease Sale

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is embracing new technology to conduct online oil and gas lease auctions and sales, starting with this spring’s Cook Inlet and Alaska Peninsula Areawide sales.

Since the state conducted its first lease sales in the 1960s, DNR has relied on in-person auctions and sealed-bid openings to fulfil its constitutional mandate to maximize the value of our mineral estate in the best interest of Alaskans.

But in 2019, DNR’s Division of Oil & Gas contracted with EnergyNet Services to use its existing Internet platform for the spring 2020 Cook Inlet and Alaska Peninsula Areawide lease sales. This inaugurated what promises to be a valuable relationship that will enhance the state’s ability to make its highly prospective hydrocarbon resources available to broader markets, says DNR Commissioner Corri A. Feige.

“Our department, like all of Alaska’s state government, is working to find new ways to do business more safely, efficiently and effectively in the days of social distancing due to concerns over COVID-19,” Feige says. “Our new relationship with EnergyNet will bring our leasing program into the 21^st century, while making our outstanding hydrocarbon opportunities more visible and attractive in a global marketplace.”