The Bureau of Land Management leased 2,777 federal acres beneath Wayne National Forest for $11,097,693 on Sept. 15, in the first federal mineral lease sale ever held in Ohio.
Apex Energy took 25 of the 40 parcels offered, according to the Ohio Mineral Market’s Sept. 24 issue. The federal tracts averaged $3,996 an acre, well below the $15,767 an acre that Ohio state land commanded in June.
The sale marks a milestone for oil and gas development in southeast Ohio’s Utica shale region. Meanwhile, the state’s energy landscape continues to shift: EOG produced 67 percent of Ohio’s oil last quarter, while Ascent produced 41 percent of its natural gas.
Antero is exiting the Ohio Utica entirely, with Infinity Natural Resources and Northern Oil and Gas splitting the company’s $1.2 billion package. Leasing is also restarting in the state’s northern counties.
Market conditions remain mixed for Appalachian producers. NYMEX natural gas is back at $3.00, though Appalachian gas still trades about $1.25 below it for October delivery.
The BLM sale puts federal mineral rights beneath the national forest into play for the first time, a development that energy watchers say could shape drilling activity across the region for years to come.
