The US Department of the Interior has unveiled a long-term schedule for offshore oil and gas lease sales in the US Gulf that sees March and August sales annually through 2039 starting next year. The plan also assigns Cook Inlet, Alaska, sales for March in six out of the next seven years starting in 2026. The Trump Administration’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1) directed the department to commit to a predictable lease sale schedule.
The US Gulf accounts for roughly 15% of US crude oil production and serves as the linchpin of offshore energy output. The Interior Department said the scheduled sales offer the oil and gas sector much-needed clarity and stability, encouraging continued investment in deepwater infrastructure.
In December 2023, under the Biden Administration, the secretary of the Interior Department approved a 5-year program that scheduled just three offshore oil and gas lease sales for the 2024–29 period, all for the US Gulf—a smaller number of sales than in previous programs. The program did not include any lease sales in Atlantic, Pacific, or Alaskan waters. The new plan supersedes this schedule.
The Interior Department also referred to Alaska’s role in the US energy mix as vital and said the six planned lease sales in Cook Inlet through 2032 ensure Alaskans benefit from new jobs, stronger local economies, and long-term investment in their communities. There is no Alaska sale scheduled for 2029.
The department added that Alaska’s unique position as both a strategic energy hub and a gateway to the Arctic makes it essential to US energy security.
The first sale under the new law—titled Big Beautiful Gulf 1—is set for 10 December 2025. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management will publish the final notice at least 30 days before the sale.
The last US Gulf lease sale (Sale 261) was held in December 2023. Twenty-six companies participated in the auction, offering 352 bids for 311 tracts for a total of $441.9 million. The total high bids offered on the 311 tracts was $382.2 million. The highest high bid accepted was $25.5 million, submitted by Anadarko US Offshore for Mississippi Canyon Block 389.
