Dec 10 (Reuters) – The Trump administration will hold the government’s first sale of oil and gas drilling rights in the Gulf of Mexico since 2023 on Wednesday, a key ‍test of industry appetite for offshore acreage at a time when the United States is seeking to unleash more domestic fossil fuel production.

The auction is the first of 30 mandated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tax cut and spending bill, which he signed into law in July. His administration’s ‌plans for offshore leasing are a significant departure from ‌that of his predecessor, President Joe Biden, which had planned for a historically small number of oil and gas auctions as part of an effort to move away from fossil fuels and address climate change.

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management offered 81.2 million acres in t

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