Hi just wondering we have 160 acres of minerals in Burke County, the lease we had with Continental expired in 12/21 do we just wait and see if anyone is leasing? It’s Township 161 north, range 94 west of pm, Section 12 NE 1/4. Thanks…
Hi, I’m another mineral owner in Burke county in Township 161 N and range 94 west, section 24 and 161N range 93, section 19, and not a professional in this matter at all, but my experience with an expired lease is that we usually waited for a company to find us? But with that said, I did do some homework on who was still leasing in our area and did call around at one point before our last lease.
You can get into the Confidential Oil List for ND and scroll through that long list and see what companies are close to your acreage and sections. It’s a long list, but it can give you insight if there is activity close to you. It will list the drilling company name.
You can also call Continental again and see what their plans would be to renew at this point in time again too. Find out who does leases for them… or call them direct. Diamond Resources used to do the leases for Continental years ago. Not sure if they still do. Our family used to have a lease with Continental years ago.
Sorry not much help! Best of luck! We have a current lease with Petro Harvester/Rockall and they just went Chapter 11 in March. 
Beth
I did a quick hunt on a subscription service and no leases in that township in the last 999 days.
Interesting that you didn’t see any leases in that township in the last 999 days. In Township 161N?
Our family lease from Lone Tree was just done in Feb/March of 2020 when Covid hit. Some of the family members did not receive or send their leases back in time and missed out on the deadline with Covid hitting so hard and companies laying off employee’s.
Then last summer, June of 2021 Rockall sent out a one year lease to the family members that did miss the Lone Tree/ Petro Harvester/Rockall - first Lease in 2020.
All leases were for Township 161 North, Range 93, Section 19.
We have more in 161N, Range 94 Section 24 that Lone Tree did include to the majority of the family in our first lease in Feb 2020. Rockall lease did not include this Range and section in the missed out family members in last summers’ lease.
LFM2-19-31-161-93 well name. A new drilling permit was purchased this year Feb 14th for this. Never did start drilling as they stated for date of last Sept 28th, 2021.
But… all our leases and any drilling permits for these wells, go on Auction tomorrow May 4th with Rockall’s bankruptcy.
Thanks for the info, I guess time will tell. Hope all goes well for you both.
I looked again and expanded the time frame and did find some leases in 12 in January 2020. Must not have had enough coffee this morning. Rockall ND LLC was the lessee. Nothing since then. No wells yet.
I responded to the note done by Beth but it also applies to your identifying having minerals in Burke County. In my case: Section 6-T160N-R94W. I received royalty from it as current as last month. Again, my understanding is that as long as a well is producing, a lease would not expire? Unless from the get-go there was a determined time limit set between the owner and Continental in this case?
I inherited mineral rights for both ND and MT in 2010 after my mother died. Identified was Diamond Resources and I actually took a drive to ND between 1996 and the 2011 time frame and noted a significant difference in the terrain and city from where I tried to find a rep from Diamond Resources to talk to.
I don’t often see anyone posting both names…Diamond and Continental in the same text inquiry. Thanks for doing that.
Not but this morning 5/9/2022 my lady friend identified she watched a C-Span program Sunday evening in which a Blu Hulsey was representing Continental and came across as an upbeat, progressive professional. I actually called Continental this morning 5/9/2022 as I don’t research much going on with mineral rights or leasing agreements or the activity between ND and MT but with the past 2 years changes in the economy and rising fuel/energy costs I can’t help but wonder if or when a lease will expire.
According to Abby from Continental, she repeated what I believe I was told in the past…that is: “As long as the well is producing, a lease will NOT expire”!
Stating that a lease has expired I would think is due to 1 or 2 things…that the company owning or offering the lease went belly-up or (2) the well simply quit producing and wasn’t worth the continued effort to draw energy from it or maintain the equipment necessary to pull it from the ground?
Like yourself, I am by no means up-to-date with what is going on with exploration or drilling operations but continually see members posting of companies filing Chapter 11.
I did see a check this past month that was 2x what the prior month was. That prior check combined (2) months and that typically is due to if under a certain amount it isn’t worth their time to send an owner a check.
But was happy to see the increase and altho it doesn’t keep up with our current inflation, it means the lease is still intact for my case…also near your Township…T160N in my case
Good luck!
Tim
The “primary term” of the lease (often three years) gives the operator time to drill a first well, but does not require it unless the leases specifically states such (very rare). If a well is drilled, then the lease moves into the “secondary term” which extends the lease as long as there is production from the well or subsequent wells under the terms of the lease. My family is held by some leases that are a hundred years old, so the wording of a lease is incredibly important.
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