Replies to This Discussion

Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on July 24, 2026 at 9:45

Good to know.  I still think you should engage an experienced O&G attorney to review and amend any surface use agreement.  I work with a number of firms and can supply you with other referrals.  It is not unusual for those attorneys to be busy.  O&G/minerals are the focus of their practice.  And O&G companies create the need for their services constantly.

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Permalink Reply by Jesse Joyner on July 22, 2026 at 20:31

Rodney. IMHO --> both Skip and Dale are offering you good advice. I agree with both perspectives. Now, it's your job as the surface owner to make the best decision that's best for you. To me, land is scared. My Cherokee dad always preached:  "Never sell your land. Never sell your mineral rights." What he meant was:  "Only lease both, i.e., lease never sell."

Now, as a businessman who manages my family's mineral estate . . . i.e., as a landowner/mineral owner with dozens of horizontal wells in numerous LA sections . . . what would be best for my family would be to have a pad. (Why?) Because without a pad, an operator can't  drill -- not only the section the pad is in -- but also the other sections which butt up against the pad section. Plus, the operators have been "relatively good" to my family . . . so I'm of the persuasion to want to help them help other landowners/mineral owners. In other words, like in the old days when a farmer would have a barn raising. The neighbors and others in the community would show up to help their neighbor out in the country. See, it's not always just . . . me, me, me . . . like with the city brats. NO. Us good ol' boy country folk know to help our neighbors. If we can help them . . . without hurting ourselves, without hurting our own bottomline. Of course, Dale is right about damage to the land. That's always a big concern. Ergo, get a good lawyer to write up an iron-clad pad lease. Make 'em pay for any and everything that takes money out of your pocket. Good luck. 

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landownerPermalink Reply by Dale Walton on July 22, 2026 at 23:57

Uh, Rodney does not own the minerals under the land.  That is why I offered up that there is really no incentive for putting up with the pad and the headaches that come with it if possible.  

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Oil & Gas ProPermalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on July 23, 2026 at 1:48

I understand he does not own the mineral rights.

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landownerPermalink Reply by Dale Walton on July 23, 2026 at 13:41

The poster after you did not.  Don’t be so sensitive.  

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Permalink Reply by Jesse Joyner on July 23, 2026 at 14:10

Dale --> I did, in fact, understand that Rodney doesn't own the minerals. He clearly stated he owned the surface and not the minerals. Ergo, he won't reap mailbox money on  the production . . . but he could make money on the pad. In other words, if he gets a good O&G attorney . . . and he makes the operator pay through the nose for the pad. Like they say, everyone has a price. It's just a question of what that price is . . . and how high a dude can go up before the operator cuts and runs. Hey, it's just my dumb take on it. Y'know, don't be so sensitive . . . is actually good advice for you, too, Dale. It's just business. Nothing personal, Dale. 

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