Drilling on federal lands is an important part of President Donald Trump's "energy dominance" agenda to maximize the domestic production of fossil fuels.
According to the official website, the Trump administration has closed its regular oil and gas lease sales scheduled after a major sales delay in New Mexico in May that postponed at least two auctions.
The move signals a change for the US Department of the Interior, which went ahead with the sale of oil and gas leases on public lands earlier this year as energy prices crashed by an outbreak of coronavirus.
Drilling on federal lands to maximize domestic production of fossil fuels is an important part of President Donald Trump's "energy dominance" agenda.
The US Bureau of Land Management, the arm of the Department of the Interior that oversees the sale of leases, had postponed the sale of seven oil and gas leases on more than 10,000 acres in Nevada that were scheduled for June 9. It is also delaying the sale of two, according to the online auction platform EnergyNet, a parcel on 88 acres in Mississippi was expected on June 18.
A Utah sale of four parcels on more than 4,000 acres scheduled for next week was also removed from Energenet's calendar. BLM officials in Utah did not begin a period of 10 days of public protest before the sale.
BLM officials did not answer questions about the status of the sale.
Last month, the administration abruptly postponed the auction of oil and gas leases in New Mexico without assigning any reason. This will be the first government oil and gas auction since US crude oil futures fell below zero for the first time in April history.
BLM offices in two other states - Wyoming and Colorado - still have sales leases scheduled for late June.
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