U.S. Bureau of Land Management held an auction of oil and gas leases last week on more than 7,000 acres in New Mexico – raising more than $3 million in bids on 11 parcels of land. Reuters said the auction Oct. 29 attracted less interest than New Mexico previous sales before the industry was hit with lower demand and prices because of the global pandemic. The leases include land in Permian Basin.
Per-acre prices varied widely from $15 to $11,353. The sale’s average price was $403 per acre – higher than an auction in New Mexico in August but well below the $4,565 per-acre that federal lease sales in the state had averaged during the Trump administration.