Two parcels in Oregon leased following BLM geothermal lease sale
Pillars of Rome, Malheur Country, Oregon (source: Gary Halvorson, Oregon State Archives, Attribution, via Wikimedia Commons)
Carlo Cariaga
4 Aug 2025
Ormat Nevada has submitted the highest bids for two parcels in Malheur County, Oregon following a recent geothermal lease sale by the BLM.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has leased two parcels in Malheur County during a geothermal lease sale held on 10 July 2025. Ormat Nevada Inc. submitted the highest bids for both parcels, with a total areas of 5,235 acres. The sale generated an average of $82 per acre in total receipts (for a total of $430,518), which was the most per acre revenue generated from a BLM geothermal lease sale in Oregon in recent history.
For each parcel leased, 50 percent of the combined bid, rental receipts, and subsequent royalties will go to the State of Oregon, 25 percent will go to Malheur County, and the remaining 25 percent will go to the U.S. Treasury.
Other companies that participated in the competitive geothermal lease sale include Invenergy Geothermal Development, XGS Energy, Drew Price, and Freights Bray Digital Asset Management. Several other companies registered but did not submit bids.
The BLM has several geothermal lease sales planned for the coming months:
Leasing is the first step in the process to develop federal geothermal resources. The BLM ensures geothermal development meets the requirements set forth by the?National Environmental Policy Act?of 1969 and other applicable legal authorities. The BLM’s lease sales are held online through EnergyNet.
Source: Bureau of Land Management
_(malDA0115).jpg){kind=link}