The volunteers of the North Hills Mineral Owners Coalition held our last informational meeting of the year Monday night in the beautifully decorated sanctuary of the North Richland Hills Baptist Church.
Before we recap the meeting, we’d like to take a moment to thank the good people of North Richland Hills Baptist Church for graciously allowing us to hold our monthly meetings in their sanctuary for the past several months. Always accommodating and helpful, we are honored to be allowed to congregate in your House to ‘talk gas lease’.
We’d also like to call our member’s attention to the hard work that the Church has been doing to beautify their new grounds and to enhance their property as part of the Boulevard 26 revitalization project. The area looks gorgeous! We’ve all been invited to join them this Sunday, at North Richland Hills Baptist Church from 5:30PM to 7:30PM for “Christmas on the Boulevard” as they unveil their ‘new front door to the Community’…
Click here for the event details.
Now, on to gas lease business.
At Monday night’s meeting the emphasis was on our need to increase the membership density. Paul Lee, our Coalition President, reviewed a list of some of the newer commercial properties welcomed to the Coalition since the last meeting and also recapped our recent “Flyer Blitz” activities and how they benefit the group. Paul also explained a research project that the Coalition is putting together which will be used to notify commercial and out of state property owners of the group. We desperately need volunteers to participate in this easy, online research activity. If you are available to do this type of research, using the Internet as a tool, please contact us at info@nhmoc.com. We would love to have your help and support.
Next on the agenda, Dr. Ed Ireland of the Barnett Shale Energy Education Council presented a very interesting documentary called “The History and Making of the Barnett Shale“, produced by Fort Worth filmmaker Chris Quinn of CQ Productions and narrated by Edward Herman. This 14-minute film was very interesting and we think it helped many in the audience gain a better understanding about gas drilling and production in the Barnett Shale region in North Texas.
You can watch this interesting program by clicking here.
Following the video program, Dr. Ireland shared with the audience his observations about the cyclical nature of natural gas industry and also discussed the uncertainty of future pricing in today’s cautious economy. Dr. Ireland remains certain that that natural gas, as a cleaner burning energy source than other fossil fuels, is a commodity that is here to stay and is becoming increasingly more popular as an alternative fuel. Natural gas is used for heating, generating electricity and as a transportation fuel. With the Barnett Shale being one of the largest and most active natural gas reserve fields in the United States, it plays an integral part in America’s onshore energy sources.
Next, our Coalition’s Attorney, Mr. Mark Nastri spoke to the group about the sudden halt in Barnett Shale leasing that hit in October, and how that halt affects the North Hills Mineral Owners Coalition. In October, while many other coalitions and neighborhood groups had offers rescinded at the final moment of negotiations, or even during lease signings, the NHMOC did not have a viable offer on the table being considered at that time.
However, our Coalition, being positioned right in the middle of a largely undrilled area in the Tarrant County urban drilling play, could be very attractive to potential drilling companies, if we bring to the table a strong base of committed property owners. While our Coalition has grown substantially since its humble beginnings in the Spring of ’08, the density of the unleased, committed property owners is what will ultimately seal a deal with a potential drilling partner.
Mr. Nastri encouraged the Coalition, its Committee, and each and every property owner with a mineral interest in the Coalition, to work hard, and work now, during this ‘down time’ to grow the density of this group. While the drilling companies take a breather to assess their finances, review their leasehold status, and plan their drilling production schedules, we need to work together to solicit every unleased property owner in our footprint and build our density.
Paul Lee, and the Committee of the North Hills Mineral Owners Coalition, would like to thank the many volunteers that helped us in 2008 to bring the group to as strong a Coalition as it is today. We look forward to 2009 and the possibility of negotiating a gas lease with a drilling partner. However, the success of the group as a whole, and ultimately your success as individual property owners, depends upon the density of the Coalition that we offer up to the drilling companies. Your participation in volunteer activities, such as the ‘Commercial Property Research Project’ (ongoing), ‘Flyer Blitzes’ (to be scheduled), ‘Yard Signs’ (do you have one on your property?), and good old-fashioned word-of-mouth advertising, will help us achieve the best lease, at the best terms – both financial and non-monetary, that the Barnett Shale has to offer.
We take this opportunity to Wish You All a Beautiful Holiday Season and a New Year of Peace and Happiness!
The Volunteers of
North Hills Mineral Owners Coalition