| 261 (presale) | 259 | |
| tracts receiving bids | 311 | 313 |
| no. of bids | 352 | 353 |
| companies bidding | 20 | 32 |
| <400 m water depth | 52 | 107 |
| >400 m water depth | 259 | 206 |
Comments on the preliminary stats:
- total tracts receiving bids and total no. of bids nearly identical to the previous sale (259 in March 2023)
- disappointing drop in the no. of companies bidding
- 83.8% of the Sale 261 tracts receiving bids are in >400m vs. 66.8% for Sale 259 (this may in part explain the drop in participation)
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 