US sets August bidding for third Gulf offshore lease sale
BOEM offers about 15,100 blocks as Washington accelerates offshore leasing
The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has moved its third Gulf of Mexico oil and gas lease sale toward an August auction, part of the Trump administration's push to speed up offshore leasing.
The sale offers about 15,100 unleased blocks spanning roughly 325,367 sq km of the Outer Continental Shelf, in waters from 5 to 372 km offshore and depths of 3 to more than 3,350 m. Bids are due to be read publicly on 12 August. Certain areas are excluded, including blocks under a 2020 presidential withdrawal, tracts in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary and blocks under appeal.
BOEM acting director Matt Giacona said the sale demonstrated a commitment to a predictable leasing schedule and supported American energy independence. It is the third of 30 Gulf sales mandated under recent legislation and tied to a Trump executive order.
The timing follows a weak second sale in March, which drew just $47m in high bids from 13 companies for 25 blocks, well below the almost $280m raised in the opening sale in December 2025, when 181 blocks changed hands. The wider Gulf shelf is estimated to hold 26.9bn barrels of undiscovered technically recoverable oil and 45.6trn cubic feet of gas.
