US Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 249 on Wednesday was not a barn-burner, but it did show a measure of competitive bidding in the deepwater and even boasted two eight-figure bids and dozens more that topped $1 million each. The sale appeared to highlight majors’ preferences for known deepwater areas, since shallow-water bidding accounted for a scant 10 blocks and offers received for these were mostly under $200,000 each. But sale sponsor Bureau of Energy Management officials expect interest in shallow water bidding to improve in subsequent sales, owing to the agency’s recent lower royalty relief reduction aimed at drumming up more development in that arena. “We only provided a month’s time for [operator] interest in the lower royalty,” said Mike Celata, BOEM Gulf regional director, in a post-sale telephone press conference. “My expectation is that in March we’ll have greater interest.” In July, the agency reduced the royalty […]