The Biden administration will auction oil and gas leases across more than 114,000 square miles (295,000 square kilometers) in the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday in a sale mandated by last year's climate bill compromise.
The online auction — expected to draw interest from major oil companies such as ExxonMobil and Chevron — is the first in more than a year and could further test the loyalty of environmentalists and young voters who backed President Joe Biden in 2020 but were frustrated by this month's approval of the huge Willow drilling project in northern Alaska.
