Updated by Ann Rascalli

Wednesday, September 1st is the day oil and gas interests will be on hand with State lands officials for a roundtable discussion of the revised standard lease forms for oil and gas interests on Wyoming public land.

Officials hope the meeting will clarify ambiguity regarding bonding, royalties, valuation and other matters concerning the first revision of the state oil and gas lease form in 20 years. The document is available on the Wyoming Office of State Lands and Investments website, slf-web.state.wy.us.

The State is not required to hold a public hearing on the changes, but Harold Kemp, assistant director of the state’s mineral leasing and royalty compliance division, said officials want to hear comments and suggestions from stakeholders. “This newly proposed lease form will bring considerably more simplicity in terms of details what the state’s expectations are. We want people to be able to discuss those changes with us and provide concerns verbally or in writing, and we will provide consideration on this end.”

Wednesday’s meeting begins at 9 a.m. and if you are interested in attending the roundtable discussion, contact Donna Bracht at dbrach@wyo.gov.

According to Kemp, a final draft of the oil and gas leasing form will be prepared to present to the state land board in October for approval.

For years, the Bureau of land Management has conducted oil and gas lease sales in which Wyoming accepts bonus bid payments for the right to develop oil and natural gas on state lands. Three  competitive lease auctions have been conducted so far this year, including the most recent one last month which generated more than $42 million in bids for 287 parcels, in large part because of the surging interest in the Niobrara oil play in southeast Wyoming. The next scheduled auction is November 3.