The October sale of Crown petroleum and natural gas rights has brought in $15.2 million in revenue for the province, bringing total land sale revenues for the 2012 calendar year to $94.2 million.

Intense competition for Viking Sand lease parcels in west-central Saskatchewan was the highlight of October’s sale. Since 2009, horizontal drilling in the Viking Sand has seen a significant increase in production from 1,250 barrels per day to 17,500 barrels per day.

“These numbers reflect the expanded use of the technology that originally unlocked the Bakken Formation,” Minister responsible for Energy and Resources Tim McMillan said. “The benefit of this technology is helping drive production and land acquisition across the province.”

October’s sale included 125 lease parcels that brought in $11.8 million in bonus bids and nine petroleum and natural gas exploration licences that sold for $3.4 million.

The Kindersley-Kerrobert area received the most bids with sales of $8.5 million. The Weyburn-Estevan area was next at $3.4 million, followed by the Lloydminster area at $3.3 million. The Swift Current area received no bids.

The highest price for a single parcel was $1.6 million. Scott Land & Lease Ltd. acquired this 1,295-hectare exploration licence southwest of Kindersley.

The highest price on a per-hectare basis was $8,532. Scott Land & Lease Ltd. bid $552,447 for a 64-hectare lease parcel north of Kisbey.

The next sale of Crown petroleum and natural gas and oil sands dispositions will be held on December 3, 2012.