Mountrail County, ND - Oil & Gas Discussion archives

Thank you Gary and RW, your input is very much appreciated.

RW, should we wait until after release date or make the call to NDIC sooner.

Mr. Hutchinson, on July 8, 2013 in one of your responses you said

..."but make certain you register your mineral interest every few years so it isn't taken away from you"...

Could you explain who, when and why one needs to register or re-register? Thank you Enrique

Enrique,

In several states, including ND, "abandoned" severed mineral rights can be reunited with the surface. The State statues all deal differently with how that can be done as well as prevented. Since you have leased your minerals recently and by recording have shown that you have sustained an interest and have not abandoned the minerals, you have nothing to worry about. However, if you have unleased minerals, you should periodically make recorded claim of ownership. I think ND is every 20 years but check out the statutes yourself. In ND they provide several ways to put the public on notice that you have not abandoned your minerals.

As always your response is very much appreciated. Enrique

What kind of leasing activity is going on in Mountrail County? No one is discussing any activity.

What the news from Mountrail County Oil Leasing? Have they started uilding the oil distribution center in Donnybrook yet?

I asked about the same a couple weeks ago, seems to be less activity on this blog anymore, anyways, I'd like to know the same, first their all crazy to lease our minerals, now it's going on 5 yrs or better since a lease and for much less, I suppose the big outfits are in now, they don't need to mess with the little stuff. Banner twnsp here, Anything? Anything?

My family has minerals in 156-88. We had a low ball lease offer from speculators called dynamic resources a while back that we passed on. Seems we are a little to far east to be commercially productive in the bakken layer with todays technology? Maybe there is a three forks layer commercially productive this far east? Who knows, we just hope the future brings something. Good luck and happy new year!

Hi Sean, mine are in 151-89, just east of Parshall about 6 miles. Looking back on dilling to the 1950's they did test drills since then rigth in my area, right around where my farm use to be, and was practically lease ever since, up until about 5 yrs now. They since drilled wells around me, but are capped and that's it. Some try to tell me there is nothing there, really, they while the drill for so long and then just cap them? Anywas, Happy News to you and all here too, lets up some of us can finally get something from this oil boom, would like something in my empty bank account. I'm even thinking of selling a percent of mine, is nothing happens soon...

Western Mountrail and Eastern McKenzie counties were ground zero in the rush. The best parts of both are held by production wxcept possibly where some landowner has a monolithic block of acreage. There are less productive acreage in both counties. Mountrail also appears to thin out to the East which the professionals sometimes call the line of death and approach leasing anywhere in that area as high risk and offer peanuts.

I believe that there are good acres to be found still in the vicinity of the "line of death" but it is risky. The operators have become spoiled and risk averse because they are used to as high a success rate over as large an area that they have ever known. There are still alot of acres out west that are not tied down, and a tremendous amount of spacings still waiting for that second well, several of which are mine. The operators do not feel the need to take any unnecessary risks. I know they will explore the area around the supposed line of death but they do not feel a need to do it now. This is all my opinion, an educated one, I think, from watching things unfold these last few years. Wish I had better to tell you.

Thank you Mr. Kennedy, sadly it's what I expected, sadly these minerals are not helping me one bit, I got hurt 13 yrs ago, the system will not help me one bit, last attorney said, it's the minerals, that and being white, single and a male, the system has nothing for me. So basically the minerals are worthless, and I got no income, nice, such is life...Thanks anyways..

Our family have property T158N 4. R92N . How do we find out what action is going on?

Jim, you could look at wells and permits on the GIS server map found on the NDIC O&G Division website. The quick look I took tells me there is oil there but the wells close to you are not high producers. Advances in well completion techniques or a rise in price of oil could move you closer to the head of the line for drilling but I don't see it as being of great interest right this moment.

Thanks RW will check the web site.

Good morning.

Can anyone recommend a decent Landman who is not too busy to investigate whether we still own my grandfather's minerals in Mountrail County? We are keeping our Dad's Estate open until we figure it out. Thank you in advance!

Marian, the NDRIN Recorders Network records, electronic, online, should go back at least 20 years. Most people did not consider reclaiming the mineral rights under their surface until recently. If you were to look and not find a Notice of Intent to Succeed to Mineral Interest with your Dad's legal description, you could be pretty sure it didn't happen.

An NDRIN subscription costs $25, they take credit cards. Be sure to cancel your subscription after you get what you need so the $25 does not become a revolving monthly charge.

Landmen are very busy up there now and they charge accordingly, not to mention the difficulty of finding one.

If you are in western Mountrail, there is probably already a well or wells in a pool/spacing that contains those minerals. If you can give the legal descriptions, I can look for you.

I hope you have filed a statement of claim, stating that the purpose of the claim is that your interest in [insert full laundry list of minerals here] shall not be extinguished. You file one claim for all heirs if they all say in writing that you can do so for them.

When writing the statement of claim, leave 1-1/4 inches in the left margin and 3-1/2 inches at the bottom of the page for the recorders seal, or you will have to buy another page for less than $5.

You don't have to "know" that you still own the minerals to file such a statement of claim. It can't be slander of title unless you "know" you don't own them, also the claim would have to be malicious and I don't think you are mad at anyone, are you? You can mail your statement of claim to the County Recorder yourself. Give them a call before you do to find out how much funds to send and I would send the funds by money order. I think this would not cost more than $50.

For $75 total, you can be much farther ahead of where you are now. If you need to you can still search for $600 to $1,000 a day landman, but first I would secure what I have, whatever that turns out to be. If it's in western Mountrail and we are talking more than a half acre, it's probably worth the effort. I hope this helps.

Does anyone know anything about the four new Hess wells in 155 93 30? They are listed as “confidential”.

John Murray, after doing a search by section, there are no spud dates so they have not begun drilling, or have only just started drilling and the reports have not caught up yet.

All permits are "confidential wells" whether they are ever drilled or not. Permits are renewed for years on end or cancelled altogether and new permits obtained. Permits only cost $100, 8 cents an acre per year for a 1280 so they do not worry too much about permits..

You could also watch the confidential list on the NDIC O&G site, when they have a date to come off the confidential list, you know they have been drilled. I hope this helps.

Thanks much. I learn a little more each day about how this all works.

Whats the word for drilling in the northeast sections of Mountrail County. Particular the areas of 157N R89W, 158N R88W, and 158N R89W.