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WV Supremes Rule on “In-Kind” Royalties & Post-Production Deductions

In April, MDN told you that the West Virginia Supreme Court was scheduled to hear oral arguments in two important oil and gas royalty cases (see WV Supremes Hear Oral Arguments in 2 Important O&G Royalty Cases). One of those two was Kaess v. BB Land LLC, a case we were not previously aware of. In Kaess v. BB Land LLC, the Supremes were asked to rule on two questions: (1) whether an implied duty to market applies to leases containing an “in-kind” royalty provision, and (2) whether the requirements for deducting post-production expenses apply to in-kind royalty leases. The Supremes ruled on Friday—in favor of landowners. Read More “WV Supremes Rule on “In-Kind” Royalties & Post-Production Deductions”

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PA Supremes Important Decision for Landowners re “Title Washing”

Alice, get ready to go down the rabbit hole into litigation Wonderland. This post is about a Pennsylvania Supreme Court decision issued on May 30, 2025. In the case Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Game Commission v. Thomas E. Proctor Heirs Trust, the PA Supremes addressed a question from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals regarding whether a 1908 tax sale of an “unseated” (undeveloped) parcel of land, the Haines Warrant, constituted a “title wash” that divested the subsurface estate owners of their ownership interest. We think the case has broader implications for landowners and drillers with respect to who owns mineral rights that have been separated from surface rights. Read More “PA Supremes Important Decision for Landowners re “Title Washing””

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WhiteHawk Prevails, Gets PHX Minerals Down the Aisle for $187M

WhiteHawk Energy is smitten with PHX Minerals. WhiteHawk has been trying to get PHX down the marriage aisle in any way it can for nearly two years. PHX has repeatedly given WhiteHawk the cold shoulder (see our WhiteHawk/PHX articles here). After begging, pleading, threatening, and appealing to shareholders, WhiteHawk has finally done it. WhiteHawk, one of the largest royalty owners in the Marcellus Shale, will acquire PHX Minerals Inc., a mineral rights owner with holdings in the Haynesville Shale and elsewhere, for $187 million ($4.35 per share). Read More “WhiteHawk Prevails, Gets PHX Minerals Down the Aisle for $187M”

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WV Supremes Hear Oral Arguments in 2 Important O&G Royalty Cases

The West Virginia Supreme Court was scheduled to hear two significant oil and gas royalty disputes during a morning session today. Both cases center on whether natural gas companies can deduct post-production costs from royalty payments and, if so, under what circumstances. The stakes are incredibly high for both landowners and drillers. The first case, Kaess v. BB Land LLC, we had not previously heard about. The second case, Romeo v. Antero Resources Corporation, we have heard about. We first reported on that case back in 2017 (see OH, WV Landowners Sue Antero re Post-Production Royalty Deductions). Read More “WV Supremes Hear Oral Arguments in 2 Important O&G Royalty Cases”

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6th Circuit Upholds OH Landowner Claims Against Antero re Deductions

An important decision was recently issued in a federal court case (in Ohio) that potentially affects landowners and drillers with shale leases throughout the Marcellus/Utica. At least, we believe it has broader implications. The case, The Grissoms, LLC v. Antero Resources Corporation, was decided by the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (6th Circuit) on April 2, 2025. The case involves a dispute between a certified class of 370 Ohio landowners and Antero. The landowners alleged that Antero underpaid them $10 million in natural gas royalties by improperly deducting certain processing and fractionation costs from their royalty payments, violating their lease agreements. In 2023, the landowners won against Antero in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division (see OH Fed Court Ruling Further Clarifies Post-Production Deductions). Antero appealed the case to the 6th Circuit. Now, the 6th Circuit has also ruled in favor of the landowners. Read More “6th Circuit Upholds OH Landowner Claims Against Antero re Deductions”

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Large Appalachia Mineral/Royalty Packages Available for Bid Now

Earlier this week, MDN told you about a mineral/royalty rights purchase made by WhiteHawk Energy, increasing its ownership interest in 475,000 gross acres in the Marcellus Shale for $118 million (see WhiteHawk Energy Doubles Ownership Interest in 475K Marcellus Acres). It appears there are more of those kinds of deals on the immediate horizon. According to Darin Zanovich, president and CEO of Mesa Minerals, “a couple of large, $100 million-plus transactions” in the Marcellus/Utica are coming to market now, apart from the WhiteHawk deal. Read More “Large Appalachia Mineral/Royalty Packages Available for Bid Now”

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Encino Selected to Frack Under 62 Acres in Leesville Wildlife Area

GREAT news! The Ohio Oil and Gas Land Management Commission (OGLMC) met for about 15 minutes on Friday and voted to award Encino Energy the right to drill under (not on) 62.5 acres of Leesville Wildlife Area located in Carroll County. Encino will pay a $218,715 signing bonus and 18% royalties on any oil and gas produced. Landowners in Carroll County, pay attention: That works out to be a hefty $3,500 per acre for a signing bonus. Read More “Encino Selected to Frack Under 62 Acres in Leesville Wildlife Area”

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WhiteHawk Energy Doubles Ownership Interest in 475K Marcellus Acres

WhiteHawk Energy, headquartered in Philadelphia and owning mineral and royalty interests for over 1 million gross unit acres with over 3,400 producing horizontal shale wells between the Marcellus and the Haynesville, announced yesterday that it has doubled its ownership in Marcellus assets in Washington and Greene counties in southwest Pennsylvania. WhiteHawk paid $118 million to increase ownership across 475,000 gross acres in the Marcellus Shale. The drillers operating on those acres include EQT, Range Resources, and CNX Resources.

4/8/25 UPDATE: San Jacinto Minerals announced that it was the seller of the mineral and royalty interests. See the press release below.

Read More “WhiteHawk Energy Doubles Ownership Interest in 475K Marcellus Acres”

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$9.6M Renovation Coming to Salt Fork State Park, Thx to Fracking

Last week, MDN told you that fracking has begun under the park, and literally nobody noticed (see Drilling Begins Under Salt Fork State Park – “No Signs of Fracking”). The radical left has been stroking out over the prospect of drilling under (not on) Salt Fork and other state-owned parks and lands. The Big Green-backed Save Ohio Parks protested in Columbus earlier this month, wearing and using fossil fuels to protest fossil fuels and drilling under Ohio’s parks (see Antis Rally at OH Statehouse to Protest Fossil Fuels They Were Wearing). With the din of irrational antis now dying down comes word that Salt Fork State Park, Ohio’s biggest start park (in Guernsey County), is getting a $9.6 million makeover courtesy of the money the state received from the shale frackers who are now fracking underneath the park. Read More “$9.6M Renovation Coming to Salt Fork State Park, Thx to Fracking”

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WV Legislature Advances Bill to Fine Drillers for Royalty Nonpayment

There are deadbeats in every industry, including (unfortunately) the oil and gas industry. Some O&G producers in West Virginia are gaming the system by not paying landowners/rights owners the royalties they are due. Typically, this does not apply to shale drillers, mostly larger companies. However, with (some, very few) smaller conventional drillers, they just don’t pay royalties owed. And if the check is for under a hundred bucks, what can a landowner do? Hiring a lawyer to litigate would cost more than the money received. A new bill making its way through the WV Senate would fix the situation. Read More “WV Legislature Advances Bill to Fine Drillers for Royalty Nonpayment”

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PA Game Commission Shows How to Manage Gas Royalty Ups & Downs

The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) owns and manages more than 1.5 million acres of state game lands throughout the Commonwealth. The primary purpose of these lands is the management of habitat for wildlife and providing opportunities for lawful hunting and trapping. You might think PGC gets most of its revenue from hunting and trapping licenses and fees. You would be wrong. PGC allows shale drilling on some of its vast holdings, and leases and royalties generate 39% of the income for PGC (as of 2024). The problem (if you can call it a problem) is that royalty revenue from shale for the PGC varies widely from year to year. For example, the revenue flowing to PGC from shale during its last fiscal year decreased by a whopping 46%. But the PGC was ready. The way the PGC prepares for those wild swings is instructive for all landowners. Read More “PA Game Commission Shows How to Manage Gas Royalty Ups & Downs”

Rising Phoenix Launches New $20M Fund to Invest in Royalty Rights

Yesterday, Rising Phoenix Capital, an investment firm specializing in oil and gas royalty acquisitions, announced the launch of the La Plata Peak Income Fund, a $20 million royalty fund. Rising Phoenix is looking for investors to buy into the fund. Once the company hits its target (maybe before), it will go on the hunt for mineral rights and royalty rights to buy from individuals and companies. Rising Phoenix’s royalty division has previously done a number of deals in the Marcellus/Utica (see our stories here). Read More “Rising Phoenix Launches New $20M Fund to Invest in Royalty Rights”

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OH Court Case Mixed Bag for Landowners re Post-Production Deductions

A lawsuit that slipped by us (and is still playing out) that began in Carroll County, OH, has major ramifications for landowners and drillers across the state. The case is EAP Ohio LLC v. Sunnydale Farms LLC, et al. in which 13 oil and gas leases were executed in 2008 and 2009 in Carroll County, Ohio. The 2008 Leases contained an identical royalty clause that limited post-production deductions to three categories: transportation, compression, and/or dehydration to deliver the gas for sale. After drilling wells on those properties, EAP (Encino Energy) deducted several other items from royalties, including costs incurred for processing, treating, fuel, gathering, and trucking. The lawsuit tussles with the issue of how terms are defined and whether these “extra” categories are allowed under the lease’s language. Read More “OH Court Case Mixed Bag for Landowners re Post-Production Deductions”

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Still Ignoring WhiteHawk, PHX Minerals Goes Shopping for a Husband

WhiteHawk Energy is smitten with PHX Minerals. For the last 16 months, WhiteHawk has been trying to get PHX down the marriage aisle in any way it can. PHX has repeatedly given WhiteHawk the cold shoulder. WhiteHawk’s latest attempt, which we told you about in November, was an appeal to PHX shareholders to pressure the board to sell at $4 per share (see WhiteHawk Energy Keeps Up Public Pressure to Make PHX Merge). PHX didn’t waste any time responding. It was a resounding NO (see PHX Response to WhiteHawk Energy’s Latest Marriage Proposal: NO!). Yet even though WhiteHawk offered a premium price, PHX has hired a big bank to help it find a suitable suitor—just not WhiteHawk. Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match! Read More “Still Ignoring WhiteHawk, PHX Minerals Goes Shopping for a Husband”

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OH Senate Passes Bill Extending Time Drillers Can Frack State Land

In something of a surprise (for us), the Ohio State Senate passed House Bill (HB) 308 yesterday, a bill that extends the standard lease terms for drillers who want to drill under (not on) state-owned land from three years to five years. The bill also extends the total amount of time fracking operations can last from six years to eight years. Sensible increases in both cases. The Ohio House previously passed the bill. The Senate version is slightly different from the House version, so it heads back to the House to reconcile the two versions, and then it heads to the desk of RINO Gov. Mike DeWine for his signature. No telling whether he will sign it or not. Read More “OH Senate Passes Bill Extending Time Drillers Can Frack State Land”

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WV Supreme Court Rules Antero CAN’T Deduct Royalty Expenses

There is an important development for landowners AND drillers in a class action case that began some seven years ago. A civil suit was brought by Harrison County oil and gas owners against Antero Resources Corp., claiming the company had deducted post-production costs from royalties not allowed under the leases they had signed. In 2022, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia ruled mostly in favor of the landowners. The District Court sent two certified questions to the state Supreme Court. The Supremes ruled on both issues in November. The court ruled that energy companies cannot deduct post-production costs without explicit lease language, favoring royalty owners over drillers. Read More “WV Supreme Court Rules Antero CAN’T Deduct Royalty Expenses”