ExxonMobil and Chevron were among top spenders at the latest federal auction of oil leases in the US Gulf of Mexico. The auction on Wednesday offered 80 million acres that made up nearly all available unleased blocks in the region. It sold about 1.7 million acres and generated over $190 million, the highest since 2019. The drilling auction was the first under the Biden administration, whose attempt to suspend it was rebuffed by a court order.
Chevron was the biggest buyer at the auction with $47.1 million, followed by Occidental-owned Anadarko, BP, Shell. Exxon, in the top five, spent $14.9 million for almost a third of the tracts, making it the biggest buyer by acreage. Analysts said Exxon’s acquisition of 94 shallow water blocks could be the company’s preparation for its first carbon capture and storage (CSS) project, announced in April. Anadarko placed the highest single bid, with over $10 million for a tract in the deepwater Alaminos Canyon.
