NEW ORLEANS—The federal Interior Department is putting up nearly 36 million offshore acres for the annual sale of petroleum leases in the Central Gulf of Mexico.
The department says the region could produce up to 1.3 billion barrels of oil and 5.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
The federal Minerals Management Service has scheduled the sale tentatively for March 17 in New Orleans.
© Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
