OFFICE OF MINERAL RESOURCES
STATE MINERAL AND
ENERGY BOARD
DECEMBER 11, 2024 MEETING
The State Mineral and Energy Board will hold the December 11, 2024 Board Meeting and Lease Sale in person at the LaSalle Office Building, LaBelle Hearing Room, 1st Floor. The opening of bids will begin at 8:30 a.m. and the Board Meeting will commence at 9:30 a.m.
The Board Meeting and Lease Sale Agenda will be posted here when available.
Further information about the Board Meeting and Lease Sale can be found here.
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STATE MINERAL AND ENERGY BOARD
Agenda and Reports
December 11, 2024
8:30 am - LEASE SALE BEGINS
9:30 am - BOARD MEETING BEGINS
LEGAL AND TITLE CONTROVERSY REPORT
Special Notice Regarding the
Canceled State Mineral and Energy Board Meeting
and Lease Sale for September 8, 2021
Dear Prospective Leaseholders and Members of the Public:
The LaSalle State Office Building, which includes the Office of Mineral Resources, is closed at least until September 7, 2021, due to Hurricane Ida. For this reason, and due to massive area power outages and road closures, the OMR staff cannot properly prepare for the regular State Mineral and Energy Board Meeting currently set for September 8, 2021. Moreover, due to the storm-related challenges, even in a COVID remote meeting environment, OMR doubts that meaningful public participation in the September 8, 2021, meeting can be facilitated or occur.
Sealed bids on tracts advertised for the September 2021 lease sale will be accepted on or before 12:00 noon on Tuesday, October 12, 2021. These bids will be publicly opened at the next regularly-scheduled lease sale. If any future lease sale and board meeting is canceled, a notice will be posted on our website. Please look at our web page for Special Notices and Announcements: http://www.dnr.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/page/168
We deeply regret any inconvenience these delays may cause you. As you know, we must place our highest priority on the health and safety of Louisiana’s citizens. If you have any questions regarding your leases or tracts, please contact Greg Roberts at Greg.Roberts@la.gov.
Sincerely,
Jamie Manuel
Assistant Secretary
April 29, 2020 Special Meeting
State Mineral and Energy Board
At the Special State Mineral and Energy Board Meeting
held on April 29, 2020, the Board granted the following
resolutions regarding COVID19 relief to Lessees:
Moratorium on Enforcement (20-04-001)
Covid19 Penalty Waiver (20-04-002)
Lease Sale Results
OFFICE OF MINERAL RESOURCES
DIVISION REPORTS
Tract and Nomination Report
Tract and Nomination Report members work closely with staff from the Leasing Section of the Geology and Land Division to evaluate nominations for state mineral leasing.
Each month, members receive a Tract Evaluation Report and a map from Leasing Section staff with the total number, category and location of nominations received by staff for future state lease sales. Leasing Section staff determines and recommends to the composite State Mineral and Energy Board whether or not to advertise such tracts for mineral lease sale and, after advertisement, reviews any letters of protest received as to the offering of the advertised tracts for mineral lease. Proposed tract withdrawal recommendations are reviewed by the staff, as well as any other business concerning tracts nominated for mineral leasing.
Lease Review Report
Lease Review Report members work closely with staff from the Tract Evaluation and Lease Development Section and Lease Maintenance Section of the Geology and Land Division. They review oil and gas activity on state mineral leases to ensure that lessees are prudently developing and producing them and are in full compliance with the terms and conditions.
Staff monitors oil and gas activity on state mineral leases daily. District geologists, operating pursuant to State Mineral and Energy Board (Board) guidelines, work with lease maintenance personnel in reviewing every state mineral lease at least once a year; analyzing lease production, lease operations, operator plans of development, local geology and surrounding oil and gas activity.
Each month, Board members receive a Fact Finding Booklet from staff containing a plat, lease data, and correspondence from lessees for each lease reviewed, along with staff recommendations. This recommendation to the Board may be whether operators of a lease should further develop a lease, appear before the Board, receive additional time to develop the lease, or release acreage back to the State instead of development.
Audit Report
Audit Report members work closely with staff from the Mineral Income Division, especially the Audit Director, to ensure timely and accurate payment of revenue from oil and gas leasing activities and production.
Staff members closely monitor mineral income to the State utilizing computerized records, prepare and transmit invoices for late royalty payment interest and penalties, and perform audits and transmit billing letters as necessary. Division staff inform and make recommendations to the State Mineral and Energy Board as to lessee requests for payment plans, penalty waivers and recoupments, as well as placing lessees on demand for royalty nonpayment or underpayment. The Audit Report members and the Board review the information and decide on a course of action.
Legal and Title Controversy Report
The Legal and Title Controversy Report members work closely with the Petroleum Lands Director of the Petroleum Lands Section to investigate, review and present recommendations on legal issues concerning title to state mineral acreage, mineral lease maintenance, and operations.
The Petroleum Lands Director, with staff's support, compiles and transmits information and recommendations on a monthly basis to Board Members on legal matters as varied as lease amendments, late assignment penalties, force majeure notice, late release penalties, operation agreement formation and amendments, consent letters, escrowing funds pending unit formation, certain geophysical permit matters, title disputes and royalty disputes giving rise to legal proceedings, pending litigation, and compromise/settlement offers and agreements. Other OMR staff members provide input and recommendations as needed and after review, the Legal and Title Controversy Report staff presents the recommendations to the Board for resolution by agreement or by instituting suit.
The Attorney General and the General Counsel of the Department of Energy and Natural Resources advise the State Mineral and Energy Board, as well as private counsel retained by the Board as needed. When the Board is named as a party in a lawsuit, authority to compromise or settle the lawsuit is secured from the Board.
Docket Review Report
Docket Review Report members work closely with staff from the Docket Section of the Petroleum Lands Section, as well as the Petroleum Lands Director, to review items submitted for State Mineral and Energy Board (Board) consideration.
Docket Section staff receive numerous items for the Board's consideration at its monthly meetings including, but not limited to, unitization agreements, amendments of unitization agreements, lease amendments, compromise and settlement agreements, consent letters, operating agreements, amendments of operating agreements, designations of participating areas, acts of correction of state leases, deferred gas production agreements, amendments of deferred gas production agreements, reinstatements and amendments of unitization agreements, confirmations and re-establishments of unitization agreements, unit production sharing agreements, pooling and unitization agreements, requests for approval of state agency mineral leases, and transfers of interests (assignments).
Other OMR staff members, in addition to Docket Section staff, provide evaluation and recommendations as needed and the monthly docket is finalized for presentation by the Petroleum Lands Director to the Board for action.