Flaring Gas in North Dakota

General Mineral Rights Discussion
1

As far as oil goes, I have been mainly concentrating on positioning myself right for the phone call from the landman as far as amounts and percentages and lease terms I am pretty much set, thanks to a lot of you pros on this website.

Question though:

Since they are flaring gas in ND, should I be concerned about gas amounts, clauses etc. I assume that gas flaring vs capture is in the initial stages of the well and afterwards (6mos+) that gas is not a concern. A draft lease states if I get X% royalty on oil, I get X% on gas.

Am I correct that since gas prices are so low and that gas has to be captured upfront, that given the flaring, it is not that much of a concern?

2

Some sites do not have access to a gas pipeline when the well is new. It is a shame as that is when a lot of gas is vented and burned. This could be because they are not treating the gas and fluid by running it through the onsite treater, this would be for a newer well, or just the lack of a pipeline. Most of the time, the flare you see at a well site are the vapors coming off the tanks. I know Marathon is experimenting with some technology to capture those vapors and send them down the gas pipeline to sell. Also, Marathon is installing internal burners and thus you will not see the flare in the future.