From a physical standpoint, minor disruptions may occur onsite, but you will experience few changes to everyday life. Drilling is designed to have a minimum impact on the environment and new pipelines are no more danger than existing public natural gas lines. Economically, production will bring in millions in revenue, new jobs and an income to property owners, tax authorities, and other municipalities.
A royalty is a percentage of production, based on the amount the operating company is paid for delivering natural gas to market. Royalty payments start after natural gas is produced and payments continue for the life of the well – which could be 20 to 30 years.
From the time the pad preparation begins on a single-well site, the entire process of setting up the rig, drilling, fracture stimulating (“fracing”) and installing operational equipment usually takes six to seven weeks. During the approximately three weeks of drilling, operations run continuously 24/7. The “fracing” may take three to four days and is restricted to daylight hours.
Please contact the representatives in the area with any questions or to set up a meeting to sign your lease. You immediately receive the bonus consideration upon signing the lease.
The drilling is approximately a mile and half below the surface of the earth. Most foundation problems are the result of ground swelling and contraction during alternating periods of wet and dry weather. The process is so far underground and has so many supporting structures that it will not have an impact on the surface. Think of it as drilling a tunnel in the base of Pikes Peak.
The drill sites are selected based on a number of factors: availability of land, city permits, proximity to structures/areas, geologic considerations, proximity to pipelines, etc, and regulated by the city gas ordinance. In the city of Fort Worth no well may be drilled closer than 600 feet from any protected use without an agreement from all affected landowners, or City Council approval.
The term bonus refers to the “up-front” money paid to the owner of the mineral rights in consideration for signing an oil and gas lease.
While there is no obligation to lease, the anticipated well(s) associated with you neighborhood will still most likely be drilled. The Texas Railroad Commission, the regulatory authority of oil and gas drilling, allows for exceptions and drilling acceptance to protect those in neighborhoods that have signed the lease. Your decision not to lease would mean you would not receive any signing bonus nor share in any royalty payments from a profitable well.