Need help figuring out which portion of section our lease covers

We have three leases covering five sections. One lease includes161-101-22 SW4. Does that mean our mineral rights are the southwest quarter of the section? If not what does it mean? Second part of my question: On Nov. 21 permit #24480 was taken out for "Lisa Marie 22-15H, SWSE 22-161N-101W." I understand the part 22-161N-101W but what does the rest of it mean? Thanks in advance.

Tammy, the answer to your first question is yes SW 1/4. SWSE means the SW 1/4 of the SE 1/4. If you go to the NDIC O&G site and use the GIS server map, select find section and input your Township Range and Section and click zoom to section and you will see your section highlighted and a circle in the SW 1/4 of the SE 1/4 which means the location is permitted. I hope this helps.

Thank you, that helps a lot. So if I understand you correctly SWSE would mean 1/16 of the section? Or if I visualize the section as a grid of 16 squares SWSE would be the third square from the left in the bottom row? And that wouldn't be ours. :-( What does the "Lisa Marie 22-15H mean?

But Tammy! You are in a 2 section spacing and any horizontal well that is drilled and produces from that spacing IS technically yours and will pay you royalty even if it does not sit right on top of your legal description. Everyone in the 1280 +/- acres will share in the well. If they drill the permitted well, it's your well. Everyone in sections 22 and 15, including you if you are in any part of section 22 will share in the well. It would be different if it were a verticle well, but this well that is permitted is a almost 2 mile long horizontal well that starts from near the south line of 22 and travels to practically the north line of section 15, the name is a clue. I hope this eases your mind.

Thanks. Are you able to explain/decipher the rest of the name for me? I am very interested knowing what each part means and I enjoy learning this stuff. I googled it but didn't find much that helped (I found an explanation of the API#).

I don't know, but think it likely that Lisa Marie lived or lives where the proposed well is to be drilled. 22-15H means that the well head is going to be in section 22, the wellbore in section 22 and travel north into section 15 and the H stands for horizontal.

Tammy, there is alot to the name, ie, I have a well #17663 continental is the operator, it is called the Haustveit 1-3H, what I found was a eye opener, way back in 1910 a (claiment) landowner named Thomas Haustveit recorded his land in the record of patents #165541, I'm guessing by the name he was of norwegian decent as most of the origional people from North Dakota are. Anyway the document I saw had President William H Taft signature on it, it is questionable if it was he or his secretary signing them but it was interesting. So likely as not the name on your well is likely the origional landowner registered in the Recorder of the general Land Office.. possibly back in the 1900's This was all from the act of congress of May 20, 1882 as a way to register origional claims to land from the origional settlers............ Hope this will clarify alittle your quest for knowledge.. Brian...

Sometimes the name has has little meaning, Samson named a lot of their wells around Crosby after cars,

Nova , Torino, etc ...

I have a couple wells in ND named "Humpback" and "Beluga" after whales. I'm cautiously optimistic that they will live up their names.

And then there is Hess, they seem to like to name them after the field they are in with a number assigned, I guess it fits better on their spreadsheets. I would like to know who named the fields, ie Beaver Lodge ( that would be easy. But like Dollar Joe or Capa or Banks Who gets the naming rights anyway?