State sets Nov. 18 North Slope and Beaufort Sea oil and gas lease sales

Three state oil and gas lease sales on the North Slope and in the Beaufort Sea, covering about 10 million acres, are set for Nov. 18, with bid results public at 9 a.m. that day.

The Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Division of Oil and Gas, posted notices in the Alaska Online Public Notices system on Sept. 28, 2026, for the Beaufort Sea Areawide 2026W, North Slope Areawide 2026W and North Slope Foothills Areawide 2026 sales. Bidders must qualify with the division by 4 p.m. Nov. 9 and bid online through Efficient Markets by noon Nov. 12, according to the sale announcement.

The North Slope sale offers about 5 million acres in 1,741 of the region's 3,121 tracts, running 160 to 5,760 acres; the Foothills sale about 4.3 million acres in 817 of 818 tracts; and the Beaufort Sea sale about 865,000 acres in 298 tracts. Minimum bids are $35 an acre in the North Slope and Beaufort Sea sales and $5 in the Foothills. Fixed royalties are 16.67 percent, or 12.5 percent in the Foothills and southern North Slope, over 10-year primary terms.

The North Slope area is mostly onshore, between the Staines River and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on the east and the Colville River and National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska on the west. The Foothills area runs south to Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. The Beaufort Sea area is mostly offshore, from the Canadian border to Point Barrow, out to the three-mile line between state and federal waters.

The division's lease-sale index says areawide sales offer all available acres, and a lease's legal description and acreage are set only after a bid is received.

The Marine Mammal Commission says Arctic offshore oil and gas activity brings risks of noise, contamination and habitat disruption, and can affect Alaska Native communities that depend on marine mammals. The Natural Resources Defense Council and other environmental organizations have urged that Beaufort Sea lease sales not be held.

The notices are not leases. Nothing is awarded until bids come in, and awards come at least 60 days after bid opening.