The Rush for Black gold in the Northeast continues at a record pace

The quest for oil is sending the northeast into another frenzy as the July sale of land parcels for exploration continued on at a record making clip.

The province received over 610 million dollars in bonus bids on oil and gas rights in that corner of the province, bringing the year to date total to 1.3 billion dollars so far, with another auction set for August 13th.

Prince George's Opinion 250 website had some details on the black gold rush heading northeast.

Another Record Breaking Sale of Oil and Gas Rights
By 250 News
Thursday, July 17, 2008 11:44 AM

Victoria, B.C. - The July sale of oil and gas rights resulted in a record-breaking total of over $610 million in bonus bids.

Yesterday’s sale brings the fiscal year-to-date total to a new record of over $1.3billion.
Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Minister Richard Neufeld says the sale demonstrates B.C.'s position as a premiere jursdiction for oil and gas investment “I am certain that these record-breaking results will continue to attract new interest in the coming months.”

The July sale offered 149 parcels in northeast B.C. covering 134,196 hectares, and sold 146 parcels covering 132,740 hectares. The average price per hectare was $4,596.

Key parcels in the sale included five drilling licences located 45 km west of Dawson Creek with bids of over $32,500 per hectare for a total of $482.6 million. These parcels include rights to the Montney formation. Three lease bids of nearly $25,000 per hectare for a total of $19.4 million were awarded in the Sunset Prairie area, approximately 25 km south of Fort St. John.

The next sale is scheduled for Aug. 13, 2008 and will offer 136 parcels covering 115,879 hectares.