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Reno, Nev. — The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is holding a competitive geothermal lease sale on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2019. The agency will offer 141 parcels for lease totaling 386,837.57 acres in Churchill, Eureka, Elko, Esmeralda, Humboldt, Lander, Mineral, Nye, Pershing, Washoe, and White Pine counties Nevada. This will be the most acres offered in a geothermal lease sale by the BLM in Nevada to date.

The BLM will hold the lease sale online at www.energynet.com.

The BLM is a key contributor to the Trump Administration's America-First Energy Plan, which is an all-of-the-above plan that includes oil and gas, coal, strategic minerals, and renewable sources such as wind, geothermal, and solar – all of which can be produced on public lands.

"This sale will assist in meeting the administration's goals of promoting energy independence and economic growth as well as the State of Nevada's renewable energy portfolio standard of generating 50% renewable energy by 2030,” said BLM Nevada State Director Jon Raby. “Currently, BLM Nevada oversees 19 geothermal power plants with federal interest, with a generating capacity of over 600 megawatts."

The open bidding period will begin at 9:00 a.m. Central Standard Time (CST) or 7:00 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time (PDT), on Tuesday, September 17, 2019. Each parcel will have its own unique open bidding period, with start and stop times clearly identified on the auction website. The open bidding period for each parcel will run for one hour from start to finish, and bids will only be accepted during a parcel’s open bidding period. Parcels may be viewed online at the EnergyNet website approximately 10 business days after the posting of this sale notice on the BLM website.

Responsible energy development includes consideration of parcels nominated for leasing as well as potential resource impacts for each parcel. Additional environmental review will take place during processing of an Application for Permit to Drill, when site-specific Conditions of Approval will be placed on the permit in addition to the stipulations already attached to the lease at the time of sale.

The sale results will be posted on the www.energynet.com website and the BLM Nevada State Office website https://www.blm.gov/programs/energy-and-minerals/renewable-energy/geothermal-energy/regional-information/nevada. Paper copies are available for viewing or purchase at the BLM Nevada State Office Information Access Center.  The next geothermal lease sale is scheduled for October of 2020.

Background

This lease sale represents parcels that cleared environmental review and public comment. The BLM issues both competitive and non-competitive leases for a 10-year period. The leases are a contract to explore and develop any potential geothermal resource. The leases may earn an extension if the lessee establishes production or provides proof of diligent exploration, otherwise they pay annual rentals.

Geothermal leases are for an initial 10-year period with 50 percent of the funds disbursed to the state, 25 percent is disbursed to the respective county, and 25 percent remaining in the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The BLM manages public lands for many uses, including sustainable energy development. The leased parcels undergo a detailed environmental analysis that includes three opportunities for involvement: scoping, public comment and protest periods. In addition, each lease, if issued, contains standard stipulations to protect endangered species and cultural resources and ensures that development is safe and environmentally responsible. After parcels are leased, lessees must submit site-specific proposals for additional in-depth analysis before energy development can begin. BLM Nevada partners with the Nevada Division of Minerals, Tribal governments, and private industry to develop other geothermal resources.