[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 14 (Tuesday, January 22, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2905-2909]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-1414]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Minerals Management Service


Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), Alaska Region, Norton Basin

AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS), Interior.

ACTION: Call for Information and Nominations (Call).

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SUMMARY: The Secretary's preliminary decision to consider offering the 
Norton Basin planning area in the Proposed OCS Oil and Gas Leasing 
Program for 2002-2007 provides for an 18-month ``special-interest'' 
process beginning with publication of this Call. Based on the 
information and specific nominations received as a result of this Call, 
a decision will be made whether to proceed with a sale. The MMS is 
issuing a Call at this time recognizing that the final decision on the 
2002-2007 5-year program has not been made. Final delineation of the 
program areas and number of sales may change from that included in the 
proposed program.

DATES: Nominations and comments on the Call must be received no later 
than April 22, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Please call Tom Warren at (907) 271-
6691 in MMS's Alaska OCS Region regarding questions on the Call.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The objective of this ``special-interest'' 
leasing option is to foster exploration in a frontier OCS area that is 
estimated to have over 1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas without 
investment of the considerable time and effort required for holding a 
typical lease sale. The general approach is to query industry regarding 
the level of interest in proceeding with a sale in Norton Basin that 
would offer only very small, very focused areas of specific interest 
for exploration. Norton Basin may contain quantities of natural gas, 
which might be used for western Alaska communities if economically 
feasible. We request comments from the general public on this special-
interest leasing process, including the terms and conditions of a sale. 
The MMS will consider all comments and nominations in the decision on 
whether to proceed with leasing and on the terms and conditions of a 
lease sale proposal. A decision to offer an area for leasing will be 
conditioned on a commitment from industry to explore the area leased 
within a specific time period.
    This Call does not indicate a preliminary decision to lease in the 
area described below. If there is no interest expressed, the MMS will 
defer the sale for one year and reissue the Call the following year. If 
the MMS decides to proceed with the sale process, the MMS will make the 
final delineation of the specific areas for possible leasing at a later 
date in the presale process and in compliance with the final 5-year 
program and with applicable laws including all requirements of the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the OCS Lands Act (OCSLA).

Call for Information and Nominations

1. Authority

    This Call is published pursuant to the OCSLA as amended (43 U.S.C. 
1331-1356, (1994)), and the regulations issued thereunder (30 CFR part 
256); and in accordance with the Proposed OCS Oil and Gas Leasing 
Program 2002 to 2007, issued October 26, 2001.

2. Purpose of Call

    The purpose of the Call is to gather preliminary information, to 
request nomination of specific areas of interest to industry, and to 
request comments on the terms and conditions of offering these special 
interest lands. The Call also serves to initiate the scoping process to 
assist in preparation of the NEPA analysis for this proposal. This 
proposal is in keeping with section 102(9) of the OCSLA Amendments of 
1978, which states as a purpose of the statute, ``to insure that the 
extent of oil and natural gas resources of the OCS is assessed at the 
earliest practicable time.'' The objective of the ``special-interest'' 
leasing process is to encourage exploration in a frontier OCS area that 
might contain natural gas for potential use in local communities. Any 
sale would offer for lease both oil and gas.
    Comments, information, and nominations on oil and gas leasing, 
exploration, and development and production within the Norton Basin are 
sought from all interested parties. Comments are also being sought on 
the terms and conditions of a sale in Norton Basin. Industry and other 
interested parties are strongly encouraged to contact the MMS, Alaska 
OCS Region, Mr. Tom Warren at (907) 271-6691, with questions or to 
discuss interest in the area. This early planning and consultation step 
is particularly important to this special interest lands process. The 
MMS will base its decision on whether to proceed with the presale

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process and the terms and conditions of a sale on the nominations and 
other information received in response to this Call. This process will 
ensure a decision that considers the concerns of all respondents in 
future decisions in this leasing process pursuant to the OCSLA and 
regulations at 30 CFR part 256. Commenters are encouraged to submit 
comments and suggestions on the ``special-interest'' leasing process in 
general and on the potential for offering other frontier areas of the 
Alaska OCS, such as the Chukchi Sea and Hope Basin Planning Areas, 
using this process.
    This Call is being issued in accordance with the Proposed OCS Oil 
and Gas Leasing Program 2002 to 2007 announced on October 26, 2001. The 
proposed program offers one sale in the Norton Basin during the 5-year 
program. If no interest is expressed in response to this first Call, 
the MMS will defer the sale for one year and reissue the Call the 
following year. This process will continue throughout the 5-year 
program until there is sufficient interest to hold a sale and the area 
nominated is deemed appropriate for leasing. Only one round of lease 
issuance in Norton Basin would occur during this 5-year program.

3. Description of Area

    The area subject to this Call is located offshore the State of 
Alaska in the northern Bering Sea, west and south off the coast of the 
Seward Peninsula. It consists of approximately 4,742 whole and partial 
blocks (about 25 million acres). It extends offshore from about 3 to 
approximately 320 miles in water depths from about 25 feet to 
approximately 650 feet.
    A page size map of the area accompanies this Notice. A large scale 
Call map showing the boundaries of the area on a block-by-block basis 
is available without charge from the Public Information Office at the 
address given below, or by telephone request at (907) 271-6438 or 1-
800-764-2627. Copies of Official Protraction Diagrams (OPDs) are also 
available for $2 each.

Alaska OCS Region, Minerals Management Service, 949 East 36th Avenue, 
Room 308, Anchorage, Alaska, 99508-4302

4. Instructions on Call

    The Call for Information Map and indications of interest and/or 
comments must be submitted to the Regional Supervisor, Leasing and 
Environment, at the address stated under Item 3, Description of Area.
    The Call map delineates the area that is the subject of this Call. 
Respondents are requested to indicate specific areas of interest in and 
comment on the Federal acreage within the boundaries of the Call area 
that they wish to have included in a proposed sale in Norton Basin. If 
you wish to comment, you may submit your comments by any one of the 
following methods:
     You may mail comments to the Alaska OCS Region, Minerals 
Management Service, 949 East 36th Avenue, Room 308, Anchorage, Alaska 
99508-4302.
     Finally, you may hand-deliver comments to the Alaska OCS 
Region, Minerals Management Service, 949 East 36th Avenue, Room 308, 
Anchorage, Alaska.
    Our practice is to make comments, including names and addresses of 
respondents, available for public review during regular business hours. 
Individual respondents may request that we withhold their address from 
the rulemaking record, which we will honor to the extent allowable by 
law. Under certain circumstances we can withhold a respondent's 
identity, as allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name 
and/or address, you must state this prominently at the beginning of 
your comment. However, we will not consider anonymous comments. We will 
make all submissions from organizations or businesses, and from 
individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of 
organizations or businesses, available for public inspection in their 
entirety.
A. Areas of Interest to the Oil and Gas Industry
    Industry must be candid and very specific regarding the areas they 
nominate if this process is to succeed. The purpose of this process is 
to identify and offer only small-focused areas where industry has a 
significant interest in exploration. Nominations covering large-scale 
areas will not be helpful in defining these areas.
    Nominations must be depicted on the Call map by outlining the 
area(s) of interest along block lines. Nominators are asked to submit a 
list of whole and partial blocks nominated (by OPD and block number) to 
facilitate correct interpretation of their nominations on the Call map. 
Although the identities of those submitting nominations become a matter 
of public record, the individual nominations are proprietary 
information.The telephone number and name of a person to contact in the 
nominator's organization for additional information should be included 
in the response. This person will be contacted to set up a mutually 
agreeable time and place for a meeting with the Alaska OCS Regional 
Office to present their views regarding the company's nominations.
B. Terms and Conditions of Lease Issuance
    Respondents are requested to comment on the terms and condition of 
lease issuance for any leases that may be issued as a result of a sale 
in Norton Basin. The following terms and conditions have been used in 
past sales and are being considered for this use in this sale:

--Lease term of 10 years
--Annual rental rate of $13 per hectare or fraction thereof
--Minimum cash bonus bid of $62 per hectare
--Royalty rate of 12.5 percent

In addition, the following are suggested additional terms and 
incentives:

--Submission of an exploration plan within 4 years of lease issuance
--Cancellation of lease for failure to submit exploration plan within 4 
years
--Suspension of royalties on initial production
--Delayed payment of cash bonus bid
--Other incentives
--Mitigating measures
C. Relation to Coastal Management Plans
    Comments also are sought on potential conflicts with approved local 
coastal management plans (CMP) that may result from the proposed sale 
and future OCS oil and gas activities. These comments should identify 
specific CMP policies of concern, the nature of the conflicts foreseen, 
and steps that MMS could take to avoid or mitigate the potential 
conflicts. Comments may be in terms of broad areas or restricted to 
particular blocks of concern. Commenters are requested to list block 
numbers or outline the subject area on the large-scale Call map.

5. Use of Information From Call

    Information submitted in response to this Call will be used for 
several purposes. We will use responses to:

--Determine whether to proceed with a competitive oil and gas lease 
sale in Norton Basin
--Identify specific areas of interest for oil and/or gas exploration 
and development
--Identify environmental effects and potential use conflicts
--Assist in the scoping process for the environmental analysis
--Develop possible alternatives to the proposed action
--Develop lease terms and conditions/mitigating measures

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--Identify potential conflicts between oil and gas activities and the 
Alaska CMP

6. Existing Information

    An extensive environmental, social, and economic studies program 
has been underway in the Alaska OCS Region since 1976, including 
studies in this area. The emphasis has been on geologic mapping, 
environmental characterization of biologically sensitive habitats, 
endangered whales and marine mammals, physical oceanography, ocean-
circulation modeling, and ecological and socio-cultural effects of oil 
and gas activities.
    Information on the studies program, completed studies, and a 
program status report for continuing studies in this area may be 
obtained from the Chief, Environmental Studies Section, Alaska OCS 
Region, by telephone request at (907) 271-6577, or by written request 
at the address stated under Item 3, Description of Area.

7. Tentative Schedule

    The following is a list of tentative milestone dates applicable to 
a Norton Basin sale in 2003:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                           Tentative process  milestones
                                            for  proposed 2003  Norton
                                                    Basin sale
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Call published/scoping initiated........  January 2002.
Comments due on Call/scoping............  April 2002.
Decision whether to proceed/Area          May 2002.
 Identification.
NEPA analysis...........................  February 2003.
Consistency Determination/Proposed        April 2003.
 Notice of Sale.
Governor's Comments due.................  June 2003.
Final Notice of Sale published..........  August 2003.
Sale....................................  September 2003.
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    Dated: January 3, 2002.
Lucy Querques Denett,
Acting Director, Minerals Management Service.

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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN22JA02.001

[FR Doc. 02-1414 Filed 1-18-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MR-C