Add acreage to a unit 3 years after the fact?

4 acres of my leased property was taken into a new unit in wv about 3 years ago. I have received royalties from statoil and Chk since then. A few days ago i received a division order indicating that the acreage in the unit was differnt. After several phone calls, i was told that on Sept 23, 2014, check had taken an extra acre and a half of mine into the unit. Coincidentally, this was almost the exact time that a landman for chk had contacted me pressuring me to amend my lease to allow for bigger units. I did not agree to that. Does the law allow rhem to do this? Add my acreage into the unit after the biggest part of the royalties have been paid out? They only intend to pay on this unit for gas since spet 23. This is part of the acrage chk sold to southwestern effective the end of the year, although ine employee told me something might have been effective last july. This basically allows them to take acreage into a unit but not pay royalties . Is this legal?

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Permalink Reply by Kyle Nuttall on February 2, 2015 at 6:02pm

Is the rest of the acreage in a unit, or just being kept under lease because the few acres are included in a unit?

Permalink Reply by S S C on February 2, 2015 at 7:01pm
i have a pugh clause. Only the marcellus is leased. They only took 4 acres into the unit a few years ago, dont know why. In Sept 2014, they started pressuring me to change my lease pooling provisions and i did not agree. Then shortly after that the sale to southwestern was announced. Maybe they violated the lease when they took this extra acre and that is why they started pressuring me to change my pooling provision. The unit itself is still only around 640 or 650 so they could have taken more acreage in. No idea what they were up to, not sure they do. I have never signed a division order before or now the new one. Apparently they dont require it in WV. My lease expires somewhere between march and may this year, dont remember the exact date they signed.
Permalink Reply by Kyle Nuttall on February 2, 2015 at 7:06pm

I'd want to take a look at the lease and the changes that they wanted to make in the pooling.  Send me a copy?  I won't charge to take a quick look and figure out if there's a case.  nuttall.legal@gmail.com.  Also, a copy of the unit map.

Good job getting a Pugh clause.

Permalink Reply by S S C on February 2, 2015 at 7:12pm
Dont have it with me. It is the krisnhna lease, basically.
Permalink Reply by Kyle Nuttall on February 3, 2015 at 5:21pm

I'm not familiar with that lease by name.  Whenever you get a copy of it, send it on over.

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