BEFORE THE OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION
OF THE STATE OF COLORADO

IN THE MATTER OF THE PROMULGATION AND ESTABLISHMENT OF FIELD RULES TO GOVERN OPERATIONS FOR THE CODELL FORMATION, UNNAMED FIELD, WELD COUNTY,      COLORADO

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CAUSE NO. 535 DOCKET NO. 160100085 TYPE: POOLING ORDER NO. 535-723

REPORT OF THE COMMISSION

The Commission heard this matter on January 26, 2016, at the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, 1120 Lincoln Street, Suite 801, Denver, Colorado, upon application for an order to subject any nonconsenting interests to the cost recovery provisions of §34-60-116(7), C.R.S., for the drilling of the Resolution Fed 12-65-26-23-6CH Well within an approximate 1,360-acre horizontal drilling and spacing unit established for portions of Section 14 and all of Sections 23 and 26, Township 12 North, Range 65 West, 6^th P.M., for the development and operation of the Codell Formation.

FINDINGS

The Commission finds as follows:

1.         Anadarko E&P Onshore LLC, Operator No. 2800 (“Anadarko” or “Applicant”), as applicant herein, is an interested party in the subject matter of the above-referenced hearing.

2.         Due notice of the time, place and purpose of the hearing has been given in all respects as required by law.

3.         The Commission has jurisdiction over the subject matter embraced in said Notice, and of the parties interested therein, and jurisdiction to promulgate the hereinafter prescribed order pursuant to the Oil and Gas Conservation Act.

4.         On October 27, 2014, the Commission entered Order No. 535-569 which established an approximate 1,360-acre drilling and spacing unit for the Application Lands for the production of oil, gas and associated hydrocarbons from the Codell Formation, and approved one horizontal well within the unit.

5.         On December 8, 2015, the Commission entered Order No. 535-712 which pooled all interests within an approximate 1,360-acre drilling and spacing unit established for the Application Lands, for the development and operation of the Codell Formation.

6.         On December 3, 2015, Anadarko, by its attorneys, filed with the Commission pursuant to §34-60-116, C.R.S., a verified application (“Application”) for an order to subject any nonconsenting interests to the cost recovery provisions of §34-60-116(7), C.R.S., effective as of the earlier of the date of the Application, or the date that any of the costs specified in §34-60-116(7)(b), C.R.S., were first incurred for the drilling of the Resolution Fed 12-65-26-23-6CH (API No. 05-123-41705) (“Well”):

Township 12 North, Range 65 West, 6th P.M.
Section 14:      Lots 1-4 (approximately 80 acres), being that portion lying within the State of Colorado
Section 23:      All
Section 26:      All

7.         On January 5, 2016, Applicant, by its attorneys, filed with the Commission a written request to approve the Application based on the merits of the verified application and the supporting exhibits.  Sworn written testimony and exhibits were submitted in support of the Application. 

8.         Testimony and exhibits submitted in support of the Application by Jason Rayburn, Senior Landman for Applicant, showed that all nonconsenting interest owners were notified of the Application and received an Authority for Expenditure ("AFE") and offer to participate in the Subject Well.  Further testimony concluded that the AFE sent by the Applicant to the interest owners was a fair and reasonable estimate of the costs of the proposed drilling operations and was received at least 35 days prior to the January 26, 2016 hearing date.

9.         Land testimony showed the Applicant complied with the requirements of Rule 530., and is entitled to the cost recovery provisions pursuant to §34-60-116(7), C.R.S., for the Resolution Fed 12-65-26-23-6CH Well.

10.       The above-referenced testimony and exhibits show that granting the Application will allow more efficient reservoir drainage, will prevent waste, will assure a greater ultimate recovery of hydrocarbons, and will not violate correlative rights.

11.       Applicant agreed to be bound by oral order of the Commission.

12.       Based on the facts stated in the verified Application, having received no protests, and based on the Hearing Officer review of the Application under Rule 511., the Commission should enter an order to subject any nonconsenting interests to the cost recovery provisions of §34-60-116(7), C.R.S., for the drilling of the Resolution Fed 12-65-26-23-6CH Well within an approximate 1,360-acre horizontal drilling and spacing unit established for portions of Section 14 and all of Sections 23 and 26, Township 12 North, Range 65 West, 6^th P.M., for the development and operation of the Codell Formation.

ORDER

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED:

1.         Pursuant to the provisions of §34-60-116, C.R.S., as amended, of the Oil and Gas Conservation Act, all nonconsenting interests within an approximate 1,360-acre drilling and spacing unit established for the below-described lands, for the development and operation of the Codell Formation, are hereby subject to the cost recovery provisions of §34-60-116(7), C.R.S., effective as of the earlier of the date of the Application, or the date that any of the costs specified in §34-60-116(7)(b), C.R.S., were first incurred for the drilling of the Resolution Fed 12-65-26-23-6CH Well (API No. 05-123-41705):

Township 12 North, Range 65 West, 6^th P.M.
Section 14:      Lots 1-4 (approximately 80 acres), being that portion lying                           within the State of Colorado
Section 23:      All
Section 26:      All

2.         The production obtained from the drilling and spacing unit shall be allocated to each owner in the unit on the basis of the proportion that the number of acres in such tract bears to the total number of mineral acres within the drilling and spacing unit; each owner of an interest in the drilling and spacing unit shall be entitled to receive its share of the production of the Well located on the drilling and spacing unit applicable to its interest in the drilling and spacing unit.

3.         The nonconsenting working interest owners must reimburse the consenting working interest owners for their share of the costs and risks of drilling and operating the Well (including penalties as provided by §34-60-116(7)(b), C.R.S.) out of production from the drilling and spacing unit representing the cost-bearing interests of the nonconsenting working interest owners as provided by §34-60-116(7)(a), C.R.S.

4.         Any unleased owners are hereby deemed to have elected not to participate and shall therefore be deemed to be nonconsenting as to the Wells and be subject to the penalties as provided for by §34-60-116(7), C.R.S. Any party seeking the cost recovery provisions of §34-60-116(7), C.R.S., shall first comply with subsection (d) for any subsequent well(s).

5.         Each non-consenting unleased owner within the drilling and spacing unit shall be treated as the owner of the landowner's royalty to the extent of 12.5% of its record title interest, whatever that interest may be, until such time as the consenting owners recover, only out of each non-consenting owner's proportionate 87.5% share of production, the costs specified in §34-60-116(7)(b), C.R.S. as amended.  After recovery of such costs, each unleased non-consenting mineral owner shall then own its proportionate 8/8ths share of the Well, surface facilities and production, and then be liable for its proportionate share of further costs incurred in connection with the Well as if it had originally agreed to the drilling.

6.         The operator of the Well drilled on the above-described drilling and spacing unit shall furnish the non-consenting owners with a monthly statement of all costs incurred, together with the quantity of oil and gas produced, and the amount of proceeds realized from the sale of production during the preceding month.

7.         Nothing in this order is intended to conflict with §34-60-116, C.R.S., as amended.  Any conflict that may arise shall be resolved in favor of the statute.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED:

1.         The provisions contained in the above order shall become effective immediately.

2.         The Commission expressly reserves its right, after notice and hearing, to alter, amend or repeal any and/or all of the above orders.

3.         Under the State Administrative Procedure Act, the Commission considers this Order to be final agency action for purposes of judicial review within 35 days after the date this Order is mailed by the Commission.

4.         An application for reconsideration by the Commission of this Order is not required prior to the filing for judicial review.

ENTERED this 5^th day of February, 2016, as of January 26, 2016.

OIL AND GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION

OF THE STATE OF COLORADO

By____________________________________

Julie Murphy, Secretary