The ownership of oil and natural gas companies may not be what people commonly think it is or expect it to be. The fact is that over 80% of the ownership of oil and gas companies in America is held by private individuals, either in their individual names or through…
There is no denying the importance of the Texas oil and gas industry to the Texas economy. A less obvious impact is the effect of oil and gas prices on Texas land values. Texas A&M University’s Real Estate Center released an econometric model positing a powerful correlation and interdependence between…
There is a new technology developed by Texas Tech University called “zipper frac.” It is a hydraulic fracturing process, which serves to fracture the subterranean rock formations by using pressurized liquid. Texas Tech University modified the original technique. As the zipper frac process commences, it creates the fractures, or splintering,…
The Texas legislature sent a new bill, HB 1436, to Texas Governor Greg Abbott on May 28, 2015. The new bill aims to provide those dog owners who have been notified by animal control that their dog has been determined to be dangerous the opportunity and ability to appeal the…
There are some relatively new operators in the Texas oil and gas industry. One of these is Parsley Energy, Inc. which was founded in 2008. Run by a relatively young management team, Parsley Energy appears to be establishing a good reputation in an industry which is typically dominated by more…
On May 18, 2015, the Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed HB 40 into law. The law is effective September 1, 2015. This new law effectively prohibits local city and county governments and subdivisions from regulating surface oil and gas activity in their jurisdictions. The law provides that all such regulation…
As of November 4, 2014 Denton, Texas was the first Texas city to ban fracing inside city limits with a ballot initiative that passed with almost 59 percent of the vote. The next day, the state’s energy lobby, Texas Oil and Gas Association, filed an injunction in response. The Texas…
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently decided the case of Breton Energy, L.L.C., et al. v. Mariner Energy Resources, Inc., et al which concerned claims of waste and drainage against Defendants who were operators of a neighboring mineral lease. The issue was whether the Plaintiffs…
Another piece of scientific evidence has been published that suggests that the negative press over hydraulic fracturing may be unwarranted. As most of you are aware, there have been many accusations reported in the media that fracing allowed methane to enter and contaminate water wells. While methane is not particularly…
Previously I have discussed the revised Texas Railroad Commission (RRC) Rule 3.70 regarding permits for pipelines. You can access my previous blogs here and here. The RRC approved that new rule on December 3. 2014, and it went into effect on March 1, 2015. You can access the text of…