A Texas-based company has purchased the oil and gas rights to 27,000 acres of land in Trumbull County, according to filings.
The agreement by Halcon Resources of Houston to purchase the rights from NLC Appalachian also of Woodlands, Texas, was finalized May 8 and filed July 2 with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Papers filed with the SEC show Halcon paid $164 million for the rights, or about $6,100 per acre.
Article Photos
Tribune Chronicle / R. Michael Semple
View looking north from state Route 82 of the shale drilling site near the Wollam Racing Stables in V
Calls to Halcon and NLC Thursday were not returned.
Robert Bond of Lordstown believes he owns land that Halcon bought the rights for and said he is excited about the opportunity.
''I'm excited about the prospect, and I think it would be a positive for the area,'' Bond said.
Bond said he lives in northeastern Lordstown and has not formally heard yet about Halcon's purchase. He said he thinks there are other landowners in Lordstown who also have land whose rights were purchased by Halcon.
Experts think drilling in the county is still about 1 1/2 years away, but other companies have been gearing up for the expected uptick in activity.
In March, BP announced the agreement with the Associated Landowners of the Ohio Valley (ALOV) to lease about 84,000 of acres in Trumbull County for future oil and gas production in the Utica / Point Pleasant shale formation.
The deal is projected to bring more than $300 million into Trumbull County in the initial payout, expected no later than October.
According to people familiar with the local negotiations, BP will be paying $3,900 per acre for mineral rights, or about $327 million in total. After that, landowners will receive 17.5 percent royalties on the minerals. The lease begins April 1, and landowners will sign the official contracts the week of April 16.
The five-year contract gives BP an option to renew for three additional years.
Currently, two drilling companies have permits to operate in Trumbull County.
CONSOL Energy subsidiary CNX Gas Company was permitted on April 16 to drill at the Wollam Farm property along Warner Road and Warren Sharon Road in Vienna. CNX signed a road maintenance agreement with Trumbull County, posted a $100,000 road bond and certified $1 million in liability insurance.
The road improvements concluded two weeks ago, but work on the property is ongoing.
Houston-based Carrizo Oil and Gas was permitted in May in Hartford for the Brugler property along Hayes Orangeville Road across from Joseph Badger Meadows church camp.
According to Halcon's web site, the company began business in 1987 as RAMCO Holding Corp., in Delaware, and changed their name to RAM Energy on Dec. 31, 1997.
In February, RAM changed its name to Halcon Resources Corp., which drills for oil and natural gas both underground and underwater.