Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Arnold L Stuart on October 12, 2014 at 9:45am

Adam: I posted a couple of weeks ago that I had just returned from Doddridge looking for certain wells, visited several pads, took names of some. What district is the Kirk pad in and is it near Central Station?

Permalink Reply by Adam Martin on October 12, 2014 at 10:02am

Kirk Well Pad is located in Greenbrier Distric which is in the eastern portion of Doddridge Co, just south of Salem and Rt 50, so not near Central Station. Think there are a few John or Jonathan Davis properties in DC but I think they are 2 different people / families. My Dad and I have taken a few drives through that area and it is amazing to see the activity from drilling to pipeline and processing facilities / compressor stations. Thanks for the reply.

Permalink Reply by Adam Martin on October 27, 2014 at 1:00pm

My dad and I took a ride thru Doddridge Co this past weekend to check the status on well pad construction at the Kirk Pad and it seems work has stopped. After talking to a few land owners in the area, word is that Antero is not sure if they are going to continue construction as they prefer to go further west where there is a higher % of rich / condensate gas. Tried to call Antero to see if I could get some more details and I'm waiting a call back. The well pad sits between two property owners and there's been some dispute about fencing, or lack there of, as Antero has not properly secured a fence line so livestock and horses are not where they are supposed to be. Word is, Antero may reclaim the property but nobody has all of the information. I'm hopeful that Leaseholder Relations will return my call to give us an update. There is drilling on both sides of where our property sits so I can't imagine they would spend money to half build a well pad and over 1 mile of access road, only to reclaim it and abandon all of the leases they have signed. Would rather they drill now vs later but the price will certainly go up if the current lease expires as there is no auto-renew or HPB.

Permalink Reply by Margo Marie Chenoweth on December 15, 2014 at 8:44am

I am totally flying blind here, but I do believe that my sister and I have some rights leased to Antero in the John Davis North area. The last we heard, some of the heirs were refusing to sign or could not be located to allow drilling to proceed - that was in April I think. Antero told us that they had "equipment on the site" and were ready to drill, but had to wait for a court approval - they mentioned an injunction, I think - my sister got the letter, not me. I don't know if this has anything to do with your query, but it is possible. Hope it helps or at least does not add to the confusion. If you hear anything, please post and I will do the same. We have a call in to Antero, but no reply yet.

Margo

Permalink Reply by Adam Martin on December 15, 2014 at 9:41am

Hi Margo, the last word I have heard is that Antero is focusing more on their investments, west of where John Davis North and the Kirk Pad are located. Antero has 6 or 7 wells permitted thru WVDEP off of John Davis North and 6 off of the Kirk Pad so not sure how they would have that approval with outstanding parcels unleased. I've talked to a few of the property owners in the area and they did have the drill mats laid down but no rig was ever on the well pad. The mineral in that area is not as rich in wet gas as wells are further west and the limited capacity they have at the Markwest Sherwood processing plant would lead me to believe that they would like to get the bang for their buck. Unfortunatley, dry gas prices are low right now at ~$3.75 (NYMEX) and Antero and other producers are going for the better, NGL's in the area. Word is, Antero will be building out the access road and the Kirk Pad over the next 10 to 12 months but the drill plan is not likely to happen until late 2016 or 2017. Not sure what the drill plans are for JDN but I would keep an eye on WVDEP and try to get in contact with someone in Denver, at Antero's Corp offices.

Permalink Reply by Margo Marie Chenoweth on December 15, 2014 at 8:52am

Oops, I have a question of my own: BCF Minerals has approached us about selling our rights. We only quite a few very small parcels in the area - nothing anyone else has been interested in up til now. Antero is really dragging its feet with drilling and we have received no further communication from them since the letter about going to court in April of this year. We have been offered $2500/acre - rights only. Anyone out there know if this is a fair price? We are both retired and could use the money, although it only comes out to about $24,000 each. I am growing old and feeble waiting for drilling to occur and then no guarantees anyway. I am heir to approximately 7.5 net acres that I know of, which isn't really very much, so even if we get lucky, how much would I stand to earn at current prices? Anyone?

Permalink Reply by Adam Martin on December 15, 2014 at 9:44am

I would in no way sell my minerals for that amount. Not only will Antero drill into Marcellus, but there is also Burkett and Utica which can net additional royalties. Go to Antero's website and look at their monthly reports that show their lease hold area's and their 1 to 2 year projected plans.

Permalink Reply by Mark Allen on December 15, 2014 at 2:11pm

formation specific lease?

if u can this is the way to go... just saying!

Permalink Reply by Margo Marie Chenoweth on December 15, 2014 at 3:49pm

Thank you Adam. I will do as you say. What is a formation specific lease? 

Permalink Reply by Adam Martin on December 15, 2014 at 4:04pm

Margo, Mark is talking about specific language in your lease that stats that they can only drill into the formation identified in the lease. Mineral owners can benefit from this at the time of lease allowing you to get an acreage bonus for each formation; Marcellus, Utica and potentially Burkett (Upper Devonian). In some cases, I've heard of folks getting up to 5k per acre in bonus payment in the really hot areas...

Permalink Reply by Margo Marie Chenoweth on December 15, 2014 at 4:57pm

You all have provided me with some valuable information. I can now make a much better decision about my rights. Thanks a million. I will post as things go on as well. Margo