The United States Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced the dates of the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) oil and gas Lease Sale 251, which will take place on 15 August 2018 and offer 77.3 million acres (312,800 km2) offshore Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida for oil and gas exploration and development. It will offer 14,474 unleased blocks located in the GoM's western, central and eastern planning areas. It will be the third offshore hydrocarbon sale held under the National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program (National OCS Program) for 2017-2022.
The Lease Sale 249 (August 2017) received US$121m in high bids. The GoM oil and lease sale 250 took place in March 2018 and attracted 33 companies, of which Chevron, Shell, BP and Total. Under this programme, 10 region-wide lease sales are scheduled for the GoM under the framework of the National OCS Program 2017-2022.
The BOEM estimates that the Gulf of Mexico OCS holds over 48 Gbl of oil and 141 tcf (3,992 bcm).