What is the current price for a pipeline to be put on someone’s property? The cost per inch per foot that people have been paid for recently is what im looking for.
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I do not know pricing, but you may be able to look up University pricing leases for a guide. Be sure and get legal help on the contract as you really need to make sure you get good environmental restoration language.
The old standard was $1/inch/foot. So for an 18 inch pipe you’d expect $18 per foot. However, that’s the old standard. I’d push for something that will get you closer to $10,000 per acre of disturbance. That’s going to vary the $/inch/foot number, as an 18 inch pipe will be more dollars per inch than a 30 inch pipe.
Keep in mind that you should make sure the easement will revert back to the surface owner once the company is no longer using it. See if you can get them to promise to pull the pipe out of the ground and dispose of it. They often don’t want to, so make sure you or the future surface owner will have the right to do that.
There are a lot of other considerations that go into surface rights, but they’re often case specific. Your piece of property is unique, and the agreement you get with the company needs to reflect your unique needs.
In addition to the restoration language mentioned above I would also ask for a non-assignment clause. As the lines are always being sold and transferred. Also some language regarding collecting the difference if one of your neighbors negotiates better terms.
Is this easement from an Oil and Gas Operator? If so, you can negotiate different terms of reclaiming the land. For example, I had an oil and gas operator who needed to use 2000 ft of my father’s property and we were able to have them gravel pack his existing road to the hunting area and had them put a new fence up. We ended up taking $20 per foot and better restoration language.