[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 126 (Wednesday, July 1, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35943-35944]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-17403]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Mineral Management Service


Outer Continental Shelf, Beaufort Sea, Oil and Gas Lease Sale 170

AGENCY: Mineral Management Service, Interior.

ACTION: Final Notice of Sale.

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    1. Authority. The Mineral Management Service (MMS) is issuing this 
Notice of Sale under the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lands Act (43 
U.S.C. 1331-1356, as amended) and the regulations issued thereunder (30 
CFR Part 256).
    A ``Sale Notice Package,'' containing this Notice and several 
supporting and essential documents referenced in the Notice, is 
available from the MMS Alaska OCS Regional Office Public Information 
Unit (see paragraph 15 of this Notice).
    2. Filing of Bids. Bidders must comply with the following 
requirements. Times specified hereafter are local Anchorage, Alaska, 
times unless otherwise indicated.
    (a) Filing of Bids. Sealed bids must be received by the Regional 
Director (RD), Alaska OCS Region, MMS, 949 East 36th Avenue, Third 
Floor, Anchorage, Alaska 99508-4302, during normal business hours (8 
a.m. to 4 p.m.) until the Bid Submission Deadline at 10 a.m., Tuesday, 
August 4, 1998. If the RD receives bids later than the time and date 
specified above, he will return the bids unopened to bidders. Bidders 
may not modify or withdraw their bids unless the RD receives a written 
modification or written withdrawal request prior to 10 a.m. Tuesday, 
August 4, 1998.
    (b) Bid Opening Time. Bid Opening Time will be 9 a.m., Wednesday, 
August 5, 1998, at the Wilda Marston Theatre, Z. J. Loussac Public 
Library, 3600 Denali Street, Anchorage, Alaska. The MMS published a 
list of restricted joint bidders, which applies to this sale, in the 
Federal Register at 63 FR 14473 on March 25, 1998.
    (c) Natural Disasters. In the event of an earthquake or other 
natural disaster, the MMS Alaska OCS Regional Office may extend the bid 
submission deadline. Bidders may call (907) 271-6010 for information 
about the possible extension of the bid submission deadline due to such 
an event.
    3. Method of Bidding. The MMS has adopted the optional use of EFT 
for payment of the \1/5\th bonus bid. Sale 170 will be the first Alaska 
OCS Region sale to use these procedures; however, the process has been 
successfully implemented for recent Gulf of Mexico Region sales.
    (a) Submission of Bids. For each tract bid upon, a bidder must 
submit a separate signed bid in a sealed envelope labeled ``Sealed Bid 
for Oil and Gas Lease Sale 170, not to be opened until 9 a.m., 
Wednesday, August 5, 1998.'' The total amount bid must be a whole 
dollar amount; any cent amount above the whole dollar will be ignored 
by the MMS. Details of the information required on the bid(s) and the 
bid envelope(s) are specified in the document ``Bid Form and Envelope'' 
contained in the Sale Notice Package (see paragraph 15 of this Notice).
    Bidders must execute all documents in conformance with signatory 
authorizations on file in the MMS Alaska OCS Region Office. 
Partnerships also must submit or have on file a list of signatories 
authorized to bind the partnership. Bidders submitting joint bids must 
state on the bid form the proportionate interest of each participating 
bidder, in percent to a maximum of give decimal places, e.g., 33.33333 
percent. The MMS may require bidders to submit other documents in 
accordance with 30 CFR 256.46. The MMS warns bidders against violation 
of 18 U.S.C. 1860 prohibiting unlawful combination or intimidation of 
bidders.
    (b) Submission of the \1/5\th Bonus Payment. Bidders will have the 
option of submitting the \1/5\th cash bonus in cash or by cashier's 
check, bank draft, or certified check with the bid; or by using 
electronic funds transfer (EFT) procedures. Detailed instructions for 
submitting the \1/5\th bonus payment by EFT are contained in the 
document ``Instructions for Making EFT \1/5\th Bonus Payments'' 
included in the Sale Notice Package.
    Bidders are advised that the MMS considers the signed bid to be a 
legally binding obligation on the part of the bidder(s) to comply with 
all applicable regulations, including paying the \1/5\th bonus on all 
high bids. A statement to this effect will be included on each bid (see 
the document ``Bid Form and Envelope'' contained in the Sale Notice 
Package).
    4. Minimum Bid, Yearly Rental, and Royalty System. The following 
minimum bid, yearly rental, and royalty system apply to this sale:
    (a) Minimum Bid. Bidders must submit a cash bonus in the amount of 
$62.00 or more per hectare or fraction thereof with all bids submitted 
at this sale.
    (b) Yearly Rental. All leases awarded will provide for a yearly 
rental payment of $13.00 per hectare or fraction thereof until initial 
production is obtained.
    (c) Royalty System. After initial production is obtained, leases 
will require a minimum royalty of $13.00 per hectare or fraction 
thereof. Leases issued as a result of Sale 170 will have a fixed 
royalty rate of 12\1/2\ percent.
    5. Equal Opportunity. The certification required by 41 CFR 60-
1.7(b) and Executive Order No. 11246 of September 24, 1965, as amended 
by Executive Order No. 11375 of October 13, 1967, on the Compliance 
Report Certification Form, Form MMS-2033 (June 1985), and the 
Affirmative Action Representation Form, Form MMS-2032 (June 1985) must 
be on file in the MMS Alaska OCS Regional Office, prior to lease award, 
(see paragraph (u) of the document ``Information to Lessees for Sale 
170'' contained in the Sale Notice Package).
    6. Bid Opening. Bid opening will begin at the bid opening time 
stated in paragraph 2(b). The opening of the bids is for the sole 
purpose of publicly

[[Page 35944]]

announcing bids received, and no bids will be accepted or rejected at 
that time.
    7. Deposit of Payment. Any payments made in accordance with 
paragraph 3(b) above will be deposited by the Government in an 
interest-bearing account in the U.S. Treasury during the period the 
bids are being considered. Such a deposit does not constitute and shall 
not be construed as acceptance of any bid on behalf of the United 
States.
    8. Withdrawal of Tracts. The United States reserves the right to 
withdraw any tract from this sale prior to issuance of a written 
acceptance of a bid for the tract.
    9. Acceptance, Rejection, or Return of Bids. The United States 
reserves the right to reject any and all bids. In any case, no bid will 
be accepted, an no lease for any tract will be awarded to any bidder, 
unless:
    (a) the bidder has complied with all requirements of this Notice, 
including the documents contained in the associated Sale Notice Package 
(see paragraphs 1-15 of this Notice), and applicable regulations;
    (b) the bid is the highest valid bid; and
    (c) the amount of the bid has been determined to be adequate by the 
authorized officer.
    No bonus bid will be considered for acceptance unless it provides 
for a cash bonus as specified in paragraph 4 above. Any bid submitted 
which does not conform to the requirements of this Notice, the OCS 
Lands Act, as amended, and other applicable regulations may be returned 
to the person submitting that bid by the RD and not considered for 
acceptance.
    To ensure that the Government receives a fair return for the 
conveyance of lease rights for this sale, tracts will be evaluated in 
accordance with established MMS bid adequacy procedures. A copy of the 
current procedures (``Summary of Procedures for Determining Bid 
Adequacy at Offshore Oil and Gas Lease Sales: Effective August 1997, 
with Sale 168'') is available from the MMS Alaska OCS Regional Office 
Public Information Unit (see paragraph 15 of this Notice). This 
document incorporates changes announced in a Federal Register Notice at 
62 FR 37589, dated July 14, 1997.
    10. Successful Bidders. The following requirements apply to 
successful bidders in this sale:
    (a) Lease Issuance. The MMS will require each person who has 
submitted a bid accepted by the authorized officer to execute copies of 
the lease (Form MMS-2005 (March 1986) as amended), pay the balance of 
the cash bonus bid along with the first year's annual rental for each 
lease issued by EFT in accordance with the requirements of 30 CFR 
218.155, and satisfy the bonding requirements of 30 CFR 256, Subpart I, 
as amended.
    (b) Certification Regarding Nonprocurement Debarment, Suspension, 
and Other Responsibility Matters--Primary Covered Transactions. Each 
person involved as a bidder in a successful high bid must have on file, 
in the MMS Alaska OCS Regional Office, a currently valid certification 
that the person is not excluded from participation in primary covered 
transactions under Federal nonprocurement programs and activities. A 
certification previously provided to that office remains currently 
valid until new or revised information applicable to that certification 
becomes available. In the event of new or revised applicable 
information, the MMS will require a subsequent certification before 
lease issuance can occur. Persons submitting such certifications should 
review the requirements of 43 CFR, Part 12, Subpart D.
    A copy of the certification form is contained in the Sale Notice 
Package.
    11. Official Protraction Diagrams. The following Officials 
Protraction Diagrams, which may be purchased from the MMS Alaska OCS 
Regional Office Public Information Unit (see the document ``Information 
to Lessees'' contained in the Sale Notice Package), depict the blocks 
offered for lease in this sale:
    (a) Outer Continental Shelf Official Protraction Diagrams. these 
diagrams sell for $2.00 each.

NR 06-03, Beechey Point, revised September 30, 1997
NR 06-04, Flaxman Island, revised September 30, 1997

    12. Description of the Areas Offered for Bids.
    (a) Areas Available for Leasing. The locations of blocks offered 
for lease in Sale 170 are shown on Locator Maps and Official 
Protraction Diagrams. Some of these blocks, however, may be partially 
leased or transected by administrative lines such as the Federal/State 
jurisdictional line. Information on the unleased portions of such 
blocks, including the exact area in hectares, is included in the 
document:
    ``Description of Blocks Included in Sale 170''
    The Sale Notice Package contains this document.
    13. Lease Terms and Stipulations.
    (a) Leases resulting from this sale will have initial terms of 10 
years. Copies of the lease form are available from the MMS Alaska OCS 
Regional Office Public Information Unit (see paragraph 15 of this 
Notice).
    (b) The text of the lease stipulations is contained in the document 
``Lease Stipulations for Oil and Gas Lease Sale 170.'' This document is 
contained in the Sale Notice Package. The stipulations will become a 
part of leases on applicable blocks resulting from Sale 170.
    14. Information to Lessees. The Sale Notice Package contains a 
document titled ``Information to Lessees for Sale 170.'' The 
Information to Lessees items provide information on various matters of 
interest to lessees and potential bidders.
    15. Sale Notice Package. The Sale Notice Package, and individual 
documents contained therein, are available from the Public Information 
Unit, Minerals Management Service, 949 East 36th Avenue, Room 308, 
Anchorage, Alaska 99508-4302, either in writing or by telephone at 
(907) 271-6070 or (800) 764-2627. For additional information, contact 
the Regional Supervisor for Leasing and Environment, in writing at the 
above address or by telephone at (907) 271-6045.
    The documents referenced below and contained in the Sale Notice 
Package contain information essential for bidders, and bidders are 
charged with the knowledge contained therein. Included in the Package 
are:
    Cover sheet.
    Notice of Sale for Sale 170, Beaufort Sea.
    Least Stipulations for Oil and Gas Lease Sale 170.
    Information to Lessees for Sale 170.
    Description of Blocks Included in Sale 170.
    Debarment Certification Form.
    Bid Form and Envelope.
    Bidder Contact Form.
    Instructions for Making EFT \1/5\ Bonus Payment.
    Certain documents may be viewed and downloaded from the MMS World 
Wide Web site at http://www.mms.gov/alaska. The MMS also maintains a 
24-hour Fax-on-Demand Service at (202) 219-1703.

    Dated: June 24, 1998.
Cynthia Quarterman,
Director, Minerals Management Service.

Bob Armstrong,
Assistant Secretary, Land and Minerals Management.
[FR Doc. 98-17403 Filed 6-30-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-M