Lease & Royalty Payments

Broome County | Energy Companies | Inflection Energy | Lease & Royalty Payments | New York

Infection Energy Delays Signing Bonus Payments for Landowners in Windsor, NY Area
March 31, 2011March 31, 2011

Last year some 40 landowners separated from the Windsor & Colesville Oil and Gas Lease Coalition to sign a deal to lease their land to Inflection Energy. Collectively the breakaway group holds about 3,000 acres. The rest of the coalition decided against signing in hopes of a better deal once drilling is allowed to begin in New York. The deal signed with Inflection was supposed to yield a signing bonus of $2,750 per acre, due to landowners by March 3rd. But that payment did not happen.

Read More “Infection Energy Delays Signing Bonus Payments for Landowners in Windsor, NY Area”
BLX-Redmill Gas | Butler County | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania

Township in Western PA Offered $4500 per Acre for Marcellus Drilling Lease
March 28, 2011March 28, 2011

Winfield Township supervisors are mulling over an offer from BLX-Redmill Gas to lease a park in Butler County, PA for Marcellus drilling. But it’s a complicated offer involving re-selling the drilling rights by packaging them with other properties in the area, and also selling the rights to install pipelines to a third party.

Read More “Township in Western PA Offered $4500 per Acre for Marcellus Drilling Lease”
Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania | Range Resources Corp | Statewide PA

Range Resources Settles Royalty Lawsuit from Landowners for $22 Million
March 23, 2011March 23, 2011

In 2008, Pennsylvania landowners filed lawsuits to have their lease agreements, signed in 2007 with Range Resources, invalidated because the royalty payments they were receiving fell below the 12 1/2 percent level that is guaranteed under PA’s Guaranteed Minimum Royalty Act (GMRA). The landowners separately were joined together into a class action lawsuit representing some 25,000 landowners. The case became known as Frederick v. Range Resources. The landowners challenged the method of calculating royalties that deducts expenses after the gas leaves the wellhead (processing, delivery, other fees). Their argument was that said fees should come from the driller’s side of the ledger sheet and not the landowner.

Read More “Range Resources Settles Royalty Lawsuit from Landowners for $22 Million”
Armstrong County | Energy Companies | EXCO Resources | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania

EXCO Resources Withdraws Offer to Lease Land for Marcellus Drilling in Ford City, PA
March 16, 2011March 16, 2011

EXCO Resources has withdrawn an offer made to the borough of Ford City, PA to lease borough-owned land for Marcellus Shale drilling:

Read More “EXCO Resources Withdraws Offer to Lease Land for Marcellus Drilling in Ford City, PA”
Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA

PA Court Case Finds in Favor of Landowners, Against Drillers in Lease Extension Case
March 15, 2011March 15, 2011

A legal case that affects Pennsylvania landowners with signed leases to allow Marcellus drilling on their land has just been decided in landowners’ favor in a PA court. But it’s complicated to explain (we’ll do our best).

Read More “PA Court Case Finds in Favor of Landowners, Against Drillers in Lease Extension Case”
Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania | Susquehanna County

How Much is that Marcellus Shale Well Drilled on Your Property Actually Worth?
March 11, 2011March 11, 2011

Good question, and one that Brandon Otis, a CPA and valuations specialist with Alpern Rosenthal, an accounting advisory firm, addressed at a recent meeting in Pittsburgh. Otis has done research on 384 Marcellus wells in Susquehanna County, PA and has come up with a list of criteria for determining value. Among the criteria he uses:

Read More “How Much is that Marcellus Shale Well Drilled on Your Property Actually Worth?”
Belden & Blake | Broome County | Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | EnerVest | Lease & Royalty Payments | New York

Broome County, NY Landowners Sue Energy Companies that Try to Extend Expired Leases with “Force Majeure” Clause
February 17, 2011February 18, 2011

Many landowners in the Broome County, NY area who signed gas leases years ago are now receiving letters from the energy companies holding those leases that the landowner is “locked in” to the terms of the lease even though the original term has now expired. Why? The legal term is “force majeure,” which roughly means “due to circumstances beyond our control—the fact that New York State continues to prevent drilling—you have to stick with us for a while longer.” Because this involves contracts and interpretation of the terms of those contracts, it’s now in the hands of lawyers, or heading in that direction.

Read More “Broome County, NY Landowners Sue Energy Companies that Try to Extend Expired Leases with “Force Majeure” Clause”
Lease & Royalty Payments | Statewide WV | West Virginia

Marcellus Landowners: Check for These Important Things in Your Lease Before You Sign
February 14, 2011February 15, 2011

At a recent meeting in Sherrard, West Virginia, senior trust officer for WesBanco Inc., Paul McKay, had some excellent advice for landowners as they get ready to sign leases. He told those at the meeting that the first lease they’re offered usually has room for negotiation, and some of the items landowners need to check for include shut-in royalties, the question of who pays taxes, and payment for natural gas liquids.
Read More “Marcellus Landowners: Check for These Important Things in Your Lease Before You Sign”
Carrizo Oil & Gas | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Luzerne County | Pennsylvania

New Gas Leases Filed in Luzerne County, PA – Exploratory Drilling Set to Begin in Next Two Weeks
January 31, 2011

Carrizo Oil & Gas has filed 41 records of gas leases in three Luzerne County municipalities:

Read More “New Gas Leases Filed in Luzerne County, PA – Exploratory Drilling Set to Begin in Next Two Weeks”
Chesapeake Energy | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania | Washington County

Chesapeake Backs Down, Will Not Make PA Landowners Near Pittsburgh Return Royalty Checks
January 30, 2011January 30, 2011

Late last year, Chesapeake Energy asked landowners in Donora and Carroll, PA (near Pittsburgh) who had received royalty checks from Chesapeake, to give the money back.
Read More “Chesapeake Backs Down, Will Not Make PA Landowners Near Pittsburgh Return Royalty Checks”
Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania | Shell | Tioga County (PA)

Some Landowners in Tioga, PA Area Receive Six-Figure Royalty Checks – Each Month
January 30, 2011February 1, 2011

An article discussing the potential impacts of shale gas drilling in the area around Erie, PA does a good job in exploring the benefits of shale gas drilling that have already occurred in Tioga County, PA. Tioga County is one of the most densely populated drilling regions in the entire Marcellus Shale play. A few facts from the article:
Read More “Some Landowners in Tioga, PA Area Receive Six-Figure Royalty Checks – Each Month”
Broome County | Energy Companies | Inflection Energy | Lease & Royalty Payments | New York

Broome County, NY May Sign a Deal to Lease County-Owned Land for $15.9M
July 7, 2010January 29, 2011

Lately it’s not been often MDN has reported on lease deals in New York State, due to the ongoing opposition of New York politicians to drilling in the state. So it’s with some surprise, and pleasure, that we noticed an article in today’s paper that Broome County, New York may soon sign a deal with Inflection Energy:
Read More “Broome County, NY May Sign a Deal to Lease County-Owned Land for $15.9M”
Chesapeake Energy | Citrus | Energy Companies | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania | Unit Petroleum | Wyoming County (PA)

Two-Thirds of Wyoming County, PA Land Now Leased, More Land being Sought by Drillers
July 6, 2010January 29, 2011

Nearly two-thirds of the land in Wyoming County, Pennsylvania is leased by natural gas drilling companies, and recent strong gas production from wells in the northern part of the county have sparked a competition to lease even more Wyoming County land.
Read More “Two-Thirds of Wyoming County, PA Land Now Leased, More Land being Sought by Drillers”
Energy Companies | Harrison County | Jefferson County (OH) | Lease & Royalty Payments | Ohio | Western Reserve Petroleum

Western Reserve Petroleum Leases 4,500 Marcellus Shale Acres in Eastern Ohio in Last Two Weeks
June 2, 2010

Western Reserve Petroleum has just snapped up lease rights to 4,500 acres in the past few weeks in Jefferson and Harrison Counties in eastern Ohio, located close to the border of West Virginia and not far from Pittsburgh, a prime Marcellus Shale region.

With one company locking up about 4,500 acres for oil and natural gas exploration over the past two weeks, Jefferson County property owners appear to be getting their own taste of the Marcellus Shale rush.

While companies such as Chesapeake Appalachia, A B Resources, CNX Gas Corp., Dominion Exploration and others are gobbling up property rights in West Virginia, Western Reserve Petroleum is quickly staking its claim to the oil and gas rights in eastern Ohio.

“It has taken us less than two weeks to acquire 4,500 acres in Jefferson and Harrison counties,” said Molly Johnson Phillips, lease acquisition manager for Western Reserve. “We are glad to give some smaller landowners a chance to get in on this.”

Western Reserve is not disclosing how much they are paying for the leases. Recent deals just across the border in West Virginia have seen a signing bonus of $3,600 per acre and royalty payments between 12 and 19 percent.

*The Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register (May 30) – Gas Rush On In Jefferson
Broome County | Energy Companies | Inflection Energy | Lease & Royalty Payments | New York

Members of Landowner Group in Broome County, NY Receive First Payment for Lease Deal
May 10, 2010

Stop the press: There’s actually been some GOOD news from New York State on the drilling front. Inflection Energy has just issued payments to some 130 residents in the Town of Maine (Broome County, NY) to secure drilling rights to their land, when/if drilling ever begins in New York State.

The deal, announced in February, calls for $6,000 per acre over eight years. About 130 residents with more than 3,000 acres have begun receiving checks for the first year’s payment of $1,000 per acre, said Robert Wedlake, a lawyer with Hinman, Howard & Kattell representing the group, called the South Maine Millennium Coalition.

The Inflection deal calls for 20 percent royalties “subject to certain deductions,” according to a press release from Wedlake and Inflection.*

*Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin (May 9) – Town of Maine residents getting $3 million for gas rights
Armstrong County | Atlas Energy | Clarion County | Energy Companies | Fayette County | Indiana County | Lease & Royalty Payments | Pennsylvania | Reliance Industries | Washington County | Westmoreland County

Atlas Energy/Reliance Industries Pay $192 Million for Leases on 42K Acres in PA Marcellus Shale
April 22, 2010April 22, 2010

The recently announced joint venture between Atlas Energy and Indian energy giant Reliance Industries (a deal worth $3.5 billion over 10 years) is already bearing fruit. Together they’ve just forked over $192 million to secure leases for more land in Pennsylvania.

Independent oil and gas company Atlas Energy will buy 42,344 acres in the gas-rich Marcellus shale along with Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), weeks after the two announced a joint venture.

The companies will buy the acreage in Fayette, Washington, Indiana, Westmoreland, Armstrong and Clarion Counties of Pennsylvania at an average price of $4,532 per acre.

Following Wednesday’s deal, the Atlas-RIL joint venture will control about 343,000 Marcellus Shale acres, of which about 206,000 acres are net to Atlas.*

According to the Atlas Energy website:

Substantially all of the acreage to be acquired is held by production and is either contiguous with the joint venture’s existing acreage or is in concentrated blocks of acreage. [Atlas] believes that it will be able to drill over 450 horizontal wells on this acquired acreage assuming 1,000 foot spacing between lateral wells.**

*Hindustan Times/Reuters (Apr 22) – Atlas, RIL to buy more shale acreage for $4,532 per acre

**Atlas Energy Press Release (Apr 21) – Atlas Energy, Inc. and Reliance Industries Jointly Acquire over 42,000 Additional Acres within Their Core Marcellus Shale Position