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Companies also snapped up leases in the vicinity of BP's Macondo well explosion in 2010
-- an area known as Mississippi Canyon. The single highest bid came for a lease in the Mississippi Canyon
-- from Statoil for $157 million. Depending on water depth, the leases run from five to 10 years and revert back to the government if not developed. The federal government will receive an 18.75 percent royalty on all production. Chris John, the president of Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, said the sale showed the "industry remains committed to doing business in the Gulf of Mexico." Environmental groups have filed suits challenging the resumption of lease sales in the Gulf. On Wednesday, activists briefly interrupted the auction on Wednesday before security guards disbanded a group calling for an end to offshore drilling. "We have a chronic oil spill problem in Louisiana," said Kristen Evans, an environmental organizer who was not part of the protest. Wednesday's was the last sale before regulators announce a new five-year leasing plan this month.
[Associated
Press;
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