I have mineral rights in southern Marshall County. There are permits issued to drill under my property as well as just about all others in my area. I counted 5 Tug Hill drill rigs today on pads within a few miles of my property, but not the pads my permits are issued to yet. I talked to a neighbor today and she was sent a letter before her lease ran out a month ago, saying she couldn’t lease again because she was in a pooling unit. this well has only been permitted not started drilling yet. I thought the well had to be completed and producing, or at least started to be drilled?? my lease in up at the beginning of next year. Can I not lease again because my property is already in a pooling unit of a permitted well?
As soon as the drill in your unit you’re then HBP, held by production. Even if the wells aren’t producing yet. Did you ever receive any unitization documents?
We haven’t received anything yet, but we are a few miles from her. There isn’t even a rig on the pad yet, but they told her her lease was HBP already and she can’t lease again. Sounds strange.
I’d need to see/map where her/your unit is to find out any info. Can you provide any info?
Correction, upon further investigation of the well pads they have already drilled on pad that goes near her property and are in the process of fracking now. I guess bow it’s a question of if her property is in pool or not. All permits do not have property listed as beingni. pool.
The question I need answered is this. If there is a well permit issued with my property in pool, but my lease is up before they actually start the drill, am I bound or can I renegotiate and get bonus again? My lease is up in April 2020, the permit to drill expires in August 2020.
It’s going to depend on what your lease says. It might define production, and it might define operations. Look for definitions of both of those words.
It may also depend on the wording in the lease of “commencement of drilling.” In some states, the commencement of drilling and operations on the well hold the lease while they complete it. Then the lease moves into the secondary term of production.
That’s true. The worst story I heard was when I was in law school. The professor mentioned that there was a producer who moved a work truck out onto the property the night before the lease expired and tried to argue that that was “operations” or “commencement of drilling”. Ridiculous the things people will do and say sometimes.