--INVITATION FOR OFFER FEDERAL (OPEN MARKET) CRUDE HELIUM

The HPA requires the Department of the Interior (DOI) to offer for sale, beginning no later than 2005, a portion of the Conservation Helium stored underground at the Cliffside Field, north of Amarillo, Texas. The volume of helium available for this sale is 2,100 MMcf and will be offered in four equal quarterly increments of 525 MMcf. In accordance with the HPA, this volume was determined by dividing the total volume of stored Conservation Helium after reducing the total amount to reflect the required reservation of 600 MMcf for Government purposes and a percentage of the estimated In-Kind Crude Helium transfers covering 12 years. This volume represents a straight-line basis for offering the helium for sale in accordance with the HPA. The Conservation Helium will be sold at $75 per Mcf at 14.65 psi and 60 degrees Fahrenheit. In accordance with the HPA, this price covers helium debt repayment and interest since the helium debt was frozen in 1996 and includes administrative and storage costs associated with the Conservation Helium calculated on a per Mcf basis. Additionally, the price includes an estimated liquefaction differential between crude helium and pure helium of approximately $10, based on an analysis of private industry crude and refined helium prices. The first request for purchase of helium and other documentation as required in this IFO must be sent by certified mail to: Bureau of Land Management, Amarillo Field Office, 801 S. Fillmore, Suite 500, Amarillo, TX 79101-3545 Attention: Crude Helium Sales Analyst. You may call Libby Conner, (806) 356-1027 with questions about this IFO. Subsequent requests can be emailed to [email protected] full version of this IFO can be found under the BLM, Amarillo Field Office Website www.blm.gov\nm\st\en\prog\energy\helium\helium_operators_information.html.