Samson Pre-App Hearing 11-19

I attended the hearing this afternoon for Samson's application for 10 units in North Shreveport. Samson did not have a specific company representative present but attorney Smelley presented along with geologist Joe Adams. Two or three independent landmen, working for Samson were there but did not answer any questions. I was not given a percentage for leased acreage but they did admit that some sections had 0% leased minerals. I questioned how they could apply for a permit without leasing any land or doing any test wells. Was told it was standard procedure. I objected to combining downhole production for CV and HA and was told it would be noted but Samson wanted to use the CV for shelf life for depleted HA to increase pressure. To the question of horizontal drilling experience the attorney and geologist was sure Samson had drilled horizontal wells but couldn't name any and stated that they were "just" the operator and would contract with experienced drilling companies. So, it appears that a company with limited horizontal drilling experience, few leased acres and no test well logs for geo info is applying for a permit for over 6000 acres. The meeting was well attended, standing room only and took over an hour.

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Permalink Reply by BirdDawg, plain ole' idiot on November 19, 2008 at 12:56
Attorney is Smelly (or Smelley) for sure.
Permalink Reply by BirdDawg, plain ole' idiot on November 19, 2008 at 13:00
LA Lady,
Sad but true, they don't have to drill horizontals. And I think combining the sands and reservoirs is a huge disservice to the landowners.
Permalink Reply by Iris on November 19, 2008 at 13:52
At least the meeting was well attended...thank you for following thru with conference request. Am I to understand the actual application meeting will be held in Baton Rouge? I am thoroughly bumfuzzled how they could force pool with % leased minerals or apply for permit.
Permalink Reply by louisiana lady on November 19, 2008 at 14:51
I am not done with this dog and pony show. For what it's worth I am documenting my objections by letter to the commish and attending the hearing in BR. If I get me a hat, can I be an O & G contractor? Excuse me, operator. The attorney even told me that with tight credit, they might not be leasing any time soon. So I guess Samson's cash is tied up. Attorney also told me that in order to check operating expenditures, I 'd be advised to hire my own attorney. So exactly, where does "conservation" of minerals, begin, end? In one of the sections that Samson has 0% leased minerals, some owners are already leased by Twin Cities. I just wonder what is going on in their meetings. How long before a permit expires? I got the impression that they only wanted to drill one well per section, HBP, and maybe get some geo info and who knows. I did come away with the impression that it won't be all that easy to chase these guys for revenue.
Permalink Reply by mary on November 19, 2008 at 15:35
The La. Commissioner of Conservation is in the same club as the oil executives so writing to him just makes your complaint official. Everyone needs to write the governor because the Commissioner is appointed by the governor and we all know Bobby wouldn't want the appearance of anything unethical. After all, he has his little eyes on bigger and better things than Louisiana. As my gran always said, just keep the pressure on the left ....... .that's how things happen.
Permalink Reply by louisiana lady on November 19, 2008 at 18:57
Well, this whole unprofessional presentation/application has me hooked (line and sinker). Doesn't seem to be any upfront oil/gas expenditure by the company in an effort to lease, test wells, etc. Can't figure out why the geologist is being paid, he produced logs from other wells (not adjacent) to justify redefinition of HA and CV depths. He defined units with old maps without current highway/infrastructure. The attorney did the app and chased down names and addresses. Thanks for the suggestion to get correspondence to the Gov. Many landowners have been wrapped up in the leasing drama, but these hearings are too important to miss. For what its worth, the attorney and geologist got the "deer in the headlights" glaze a few times during the meeting. What an eyeopener.
Permalink Reply by gawain on November 20, 2008 at 2:45
You may be sure it was not the lawyer, but rather some hard-working landman who actually "chased down the names and addresses" (assuming you're talking about the interested parties list--those who received notice of the pre-app hearing). Few lawyers are willing to dirty their alabaster hands with them smelly old books (their surnames notwithstanding).
Permalink Reply by Grice on November 20, 2008 at 3:08
In accounting for that possibility, I have created my own spreadsheet of the landowners in my section. The purpose; If I can locate these landowners, then there should be no legitimate reason why a landman/lawyer would be incapable of doing the same thing.

FYI: There are 368 separate tracks of land in my section. Of those properties, 346 are owned by local residents. The remaining tracks are owned by people as far away as California, Ohio, Nebraska, Florida, Alabama, and Texas being the closest "out-of-towner".
Permalink Reply by gawain on November 20, 2008 at 3:28
And have you also verified the *mineral* ownership of each and every one of those tracts, not to mention the complete ownership of the working interest in each and every lease covering those tracts? This is also normally done not only for the acreage to be unitized, but also for a "halo" (typically 40 acres) around the proposed unit (on which the operator may, as the original poster learned, may not even have leases) . Whatever the shortcomings of those who have compiled IPL's (interested parties lists) in the subject areas, I assure you that it is no mean task if done properly.
Permalink Reply by Grice on November 20, 2008 at 3:55
I have not performed a mineral ownership search for each track, since that was never my intent. The purpose of my list was to gather contact information, so that when activity should begin in this section, I can inform those who may not be aware of the activity. It is each property owner's obligation to determine their independent mineral rights. Tracking mineral ownership is not a difficult task, but simply too time consuming to do for each track of land. However, I have traced mineral ownership of a select few, and may continue to do more as time permits.
Permalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on November 20, 2008 at 3:31
Grice. You have a job ahead of you. Most IP lists prepared by operators filing unit applications are fraught with typos and incorrect mailing addresses. Many are so poorly prepared that it is hard to imagine that the inaccuracies were not intentional.
Permalink Reply by The_Baron on November 20, 2008 at 3:52
I understand your frustration KB, but it doesn't help when agencies we rely on like the Caddo Assessor can be over a year behind.

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