Submerged tracts off coasts of Galveston Brazoria and Matagorda counties went to highest bidder
AUSTIN - Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson and the School Land Board today awarded three geothermal energy leases off the Texas coast.
Texas is the nations new frontier for renewable energy and todays lease sale is more evidence of that Patterson said. These leases should earn the states school fund millions and show that renewable energy is profitable in Texas.
Geo Texas Co. based in Eugene Oregon was the winning and only bidder for the right to produce geothermal energy on 128758 acres of state submerged land off the coasts of Galveston Brazoria and Matagorda counties.
The terms of the bid require Geo Texas to pay $2 an acre bonus and $3 an acre annual rental for the state submerged land. Once Geo Texas begins to produce electricity the states Permanent School Fund will earn a 2.05 percent royalty for years 1-10 of the lease and 3.8 percent on years 11-30. Even without any energy production the states Permanent School Fund will earn more than $386000 a year.
In 2005 Patterson and the School Land Board signed the nations first-ever lease for offshore wind energy production off the coast of Galveston. In 2007 Patterson signed the states first leases for solar and geothermal energy production.
This push to exploit the Permanent School Funds renewable energy resources is one of Pattersons top goals. Oil and gas have earned more than $9 billion for public education in Texas but oil and gas are depletable resources.
We must take action now to diversify our revenue stream for the PSF Patterson said. For the schoolchildren of Texas renewable energy means renewable revenue.
