Heightened interest in the southwest's Shaunavon oil play has significantly boosted revenue from the latest sale of Crown petroleum and natural gas rights.
The Shaunavon play accounted for more than half the total in April's sale, which brought in $109 million in revenue for the province. Land sale revenues for the 2011 calendar year stand at $152 million after two sales.
The latest sale was the third best on record for an April sale. It also marked the seventh time in the last three years that a single land sale has topped $100 million.
"This was a great sale, based on both the quantity and the quality of the bids we received," Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd said. "We had the usual strong interest in the Bakken play, but our rich oil resources in the southwest are obviously causing a stir in the industry.
"Land sales are a key barometer of future activity in the industry, and based on what we've seen over the last 15 months from our sales, the forecast is very bright indeed for increased investment by the industry - investment that results in jobs and prosperity for the people of Saskatchewan."
April's sale included 16 petroleum and natural gas exploration licences that sold for $26.2 million and 311 lease parcels that attracted $82.5 million in bonus bids.
The Swift Current area, on the strength of the Shaunavon play, received the most bids with sales of $56.6 million. The Weyburn-Estevan area was next at $40.4 million, followed by the Kindersley-Kerrobert area at $7.8 million and the Lloydminster area at $4 million.
The highest price for a single parcel was $7.3 million, paid by Husky Oil Operations Ltd. for a 2,331-hectare exploration licence southwest of Estevan along the Canada-United States border.
The highest price on a per-hectare basis was $10,214. Villanova Oil Corp. bid $320,000 for a 31-hectare lease parcel near Carnduff.
A special exploratory permit block on offer west of Hudson Bay received a work commitment bid of $200,000 from Lane Land Services Ltd.
The next sale of Crown petroleum and natural gas dispositions will be held on June 6.
