Released on February 6, 2020
The February public offering of Crown petroleum and natural gas rights held Tuesday raised $1.9 million in revenue for the province of Saskatchewan, bringing the final total for the 2019-20 fiscal year to $17 million after six sales.
The Estevan area was largely the focus of bid activity, generating $1,646,667.23 for two exploration licences and eight leases totalling 18,559.271 hectares. The highest bonus bid received on a parcel in this offering was $701,759.56 for a 224.533-hectare lease northeast of Midale. This parcel was purchased by Millennium Land (222) Ltd. and is prospective for oil in the Frobisher Beds of the Madison Group and the Bakken Formation.
Two exploration licences totalling 17,817.867 hectares in the Estevan area received a total of $633,045.67. These parcels are situated southwest of Radville and are prospective for oil in the Ratcliffe Beds of the Madison Group, the Bakken Formation and the Red River Formation. Petro-Lin Energy Corporation bid $432,537.42 to acquire one exploration licence consisting of 9,167.813 hectares, while 1140234 Alberta Ltd. bid $200,508.25 on the other licence totalling 8,650.054 hectares.
Saskatchewan has worked diligently over the past decade to create one of the most competitive business environments in North America, with a royalty regime that is stable and compares favourably with other jurisdictions.
Entities like Scotiabank and the Fraser Institute identify Saskatchewan as a destination of choice when it comes to oil and gas industry investment and profitability.
The scheduled date for the next public offering is April 7, 2020, which will be the first offering for the 2020-21 fiscal year.
