BP and Chevron top the list of bidders at a small US Gulf of Mexico gas and oil auction

According to a U.S. government livestreamed auction, BP's single bid accounted for almost half of the total. The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management conducted the sale. It was a far less successful one than the previous auction three months earlier. Donald Trump's administration prioritizes regular lease sales and plans to have 30 in the area by 2040.

The auction was won by a $21 million bid from BP on a block located in Green Canyon. Chevron was also a high bidder, as were Shell, LLOG Exploration, Anadarko, Woodside Energy and Anadarko. Chevron won the high bid for three blocks at $11.5 million.

Livestreaming was available on BOEM's website.

Lanny Erdos said, "Today's result is an important and needed step forward," at the auction. "We have restored confidence." "For a 'far too long', the offshore industry has been operating?under policy reversals and delays."

BOEM is a part of the Interior Department.

(source: Reuters)