State Auctioning Leases for Oil and Gas Land

OLYMPIA, WA-The state will auction off 10-year leases this month for 324,000 acres of state-owned land that has the potential oil and gas production. Owned by the State Department of Natural Resources, the lands are located in the following counties: Adams, Benton, Franklin, Grant, Klickitat, Kittitas, Walla Walla and Yakima. The leases will help to support trust beneficiaries such as schools, universities and other state institutions. The DNR handles oil and gas leases for DNR-managed lands and state lands managed by other agencies. Oil and gas leases offered at auction will be awarded to the person offering the greatest one-time bonus bid. All bonus bids are made on a per-acre basis. One-fifth of the bonus bid plus the first year rental of $1.25 per acre is due at the end of the auction. The required minimum bid is $2 per acre. A $1 per acre surcharge will be assessed to the successful bidder to cover the cost of lease processing and environmental review. Oral bidding will begin at 9 a.m., Tuesday, April 27, in Meeting Room 2 of the King Oscar Motel. The DNR manages about 5.6 million acres of state-owned forest, aquatic, agricultural and urban lands for long-term benefits to current and future trust beneficiaries and other residents of the state. Since 1970, DNR-managed lands have produced more than $5.7 billion in revenue.