The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced the fourth offshore oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico. It plans to offer oil and gas companies approximately 15,104 unleased offshore blocks, with a total area of about 80.4 million acres (about 325,400 square kilometers). This lease sale is numbered BBG4, proposes a 12.5% oil and gas production royalty rate, and is scheduled to open bidding in March 2027.
The proposed sale area is located on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico. The relevant notice documents set out the block boundaries, lease terms, minimum bid amounts, rental rates, and lease restrictions. The management agency has also published the proposed sale map, block information, and bidding materials for review by potential bidders.
Under the Working Families Tax Cut Act passed by the United States in 2025, the federal government must hold at least 30 Gulf of Mexico oil and gas lease sales by 2040. This BBG4 is the fourth sale required by the act. The first three were held in 2025 and 2026 and received high bids totaling approximately US$430 million.
According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Minerals Management, the Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf covers a total area of about 160 million acres and is estimated to contain 26.9 billion barrels of undiscovered but technically recoverable oil resources and 45.59 trillion cubic feet of natural gas resources. The 80.4 million acres planned for sale this time fall within the unleased block area, while the relevant resource estimates cover the entire Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf.
The proposed sale notice for this round is scheduled to be published in the U.S. Federal Register on October 9, after which a 60-day comment period will begin to seek the views of the governors of affected coastal states and local governments. After reviewing the comments, the management agency will issue a final sale notice at least 30 days before the planned bid opening date. Bidding is expected to take place in March 2027.
On July 10, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Interior merged the former Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement into the Bureau of Ocean Minerals Management, which is responsible for unified management of U.S. offshore energy and marine mineral resources, including lease approvals, safety oversight, and environmental protection.
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Post time: Oct-10-2026