Offshore Natural Gas and Oil Operations
The Gulf of Mexico Regional Office conducts all oil and gas leasing and resource management functions on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) for the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region and the Atlantic OCS Area.
The Atlantic OCS Area is divided into four planning areas along the Atlantic seaboard: the North Atlantic, Mid-Atlantic, South Atlantic, and the Straits of Florida.*
On November 17, 2000, the interests in the last remaining 8 natural gas and oil leases active in the Federal waters offshore North Carolina were relinquished by Conoco, Shell Offshore and OYX USA. There are now no oil and gas leases in existence off the Atlantic Coast.
General Description | |||||
| Planning Area | Total OCS Acreage | Historical Leased Blocks Active and Terminated | Active Leases | Active Lease Acreage | Adjacent Coastal States |
| North Atlantic | 92.32 million | 63 | 0 | 0 | Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey |
| Mid-Atlantic | 112.83 million | 238 | 0 | 0 | Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina |
| South Atlantic | 54.34 million | 109 | 0 | 0 | South Carolina, Georgia, Florida |
| Straits of Florida* | 9.64 million | 23 | 0 | 0 | Florida |
| Total** | 269.13 million (48,447 blocks) | 433 | 0 | 0 | |
Historical Atlantic Lease Sale Information** | |||||
| Tracts Offered | Tracts Leased | Bids Received | Acres Bid On | Acres Leased Active and Inactive | Total Bonus High Bid |
| 9,240 tracts | 433 | 1,248 | 3,013,106 | 2,334,089 | $2.99 billion |
Lease Sale History of the Atlantic OCS
(table with information by lease sale)
| The Straits of Florida Planning Area was transferred to the Atlantic OCS Area in 1985. At the time of Lease Sale #5 in 1959, the Straits of Florida was administratively considered part of the Gulf of Mexico OCS Region. | |
| Includes Straits of Florida Planning Area. |