Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, released the following statement on the U.S. Bureau of Energy Ocean Management’s (BOEM) announcement that Cook Inlet Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Lease Sale 258 will take place on December 30, 2022. This follows a requirement—included in the Inflation Reduction Act by Chairman Manchin—that Lease Sale 258 take place before December 31, 2022. The sale will offer approximately 958,202 acres off of Alaska’s southcentral coast for oil and gas development.

“This announcement is a welcome step towards strengthening America’s energy security and realizing the benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act. Investing in and utilizing the abundant natural resources in our federal lands and water will help ensure we have the energy we need to power our nation and support our allies. We included this provision in the Inflation Reduction Act to unlock and unleash American energy and I am glad the Administration is following the law. The United States can produce energy cleaner than anywhere else in the world, and there has never been a more critical time to invest in American energy production. I look forward to the administration continuing to implement the Inflation Reduction Act’s all-of-the-above energy approach that will help keep energy affordable and reliable for all Americans,” said Chairman Manchin.