First oil sales on public land under Biden bring $22 million

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Energy companies have submitted bids totaling more than $22 million to secure drilling rights on about 110 square miles of federal lands in the western U.S.

Thursday’s sale of onshore oil and gas leases in seven western states was the first since President Joe Biden took office.

Leases on about 90 square miles went unsold in the online auctions.

Republicans have pressed Biden to expand U.S. crude production, but companies have been hesitant to expand too quickly because of uncertainty over how long high prices will continue.