This year's western Gulf of Mexico lease sale garnered the largest amount of total money exposed in a western Gulf sale since 1998. It also marked the 50th anniversary of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, says Thomas E. Marsh of Houston-based ODS-Petrodata. The Minerals Management Service put 3,996 tracts up for bid offshore Texas and Louisiana in the sale, held in August. Of that number, 335 tracts attracted 407 bids from 63 companies. The total high bids of $148.7 million fell short of last year's $151.2 million in high bids, but the total money exposed was $258.7 million. That contrasts to last year's sale, in which $181.5 million was exposed in 391 bids on 323 blocks. Amerada Hess was the big winner at the sale, offering 59 apparent high bids. In all, 57 companies participated in high bids this year. The sale attracted bids on 110 blocks in less than 200 meters of water, compared with the 142 shallow-water blocks that received bids in last year's sale. "However, bonuses paid to acquire shallow-water leases more than doubled in this year's sale," says Marsh. "The average high bid for a shallow-water block in Western Gulf Lease Sale 187 was $553,917, compared with only $268,648 in Lease Sale 184." High Island Block 170, in less than 60 feet of water, was the most sought-after block in the sale. It attracted a total of $111.5 million in 13 separate bids, and was sold to independent LLOG Exploration for a high bid of $22.6 million. Spending on ultradeepwater properties was down this year by almost 50%, although approximately 54% of the tracts that received bids were in ultradeep waters of more than 2,625 feet, says Marsh. Alaminos Canyon Block 945 was the deepest-water tract to receive a bid. Shell and Unocal joined to place $511,000 on the parcel, which is in 8,235 feet of water. -Peggy Williams