Forty companies will be awaiting the news early Wednesday when the Minerals Management Service (MMS) unveils the winning bids in its Western Gulf of Mexico (GOM) Lease Sale 204. There were 358 bids on 282 tracks up for lease.

MMS offered a total of 3,338 tracks on 18 million acres offshore Texas. The sealed bids are scheduled to be opened at 9 a.m. EDT in New Orleans.

“The offshore oil and gas industry has once again demonstrated its belief in the future of energy production from the Gulf of Mexico,” said MMS Director Randall Luthi. “The number of bids on these tracts is an indication of just how important the Gulf of Mexico is in providing energy for the United States.”

The sale will be webcast through the Offshore Oil Scouts Association at www.oosa.com using the Real Player media system. For more information, visit www.mms.gov.

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