Sell Your Ness County Mineral Rights
We buy oil and gas royalties and mineral rights in Kansas and throughout the United States.
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Ness County, Kansas
A brief overview of oil and gas activity
Ness County is located in western Kansas and ranks as the eighth most prolific oil-producing county in Kansas.
Ness County is sprinkled with old vertical wells (imagine a straw in a jelly doughnut), and many were plugged long ago. Most wells in Kansas are stripper wells, meaning they produce less than 15 barrels of oil or less than 90 MCF of gas per day. By contrast, many horizontal wells in Texas and Oklahoma produce north of 500 barrels per day.
Striper wells have their place in our energy mix. They make up 7.4% of US oil production. Stripper wells also disproportionally contribute to methane emissions which hurt the environment. The current administration is attempting to curtail methane emissions, putting financial stress on small operators and may make many stripper wells uneconomical. Once a well is uneconomical, it is plugged, and mineral owners no longer receive royalty payments.
Kansas oil wells account for 1.1% of US oil production and 0.5% of US gas production (source: ShaleXP).
How Do I Locate My Kansas Mineral Rights?
Kansas recently updated its interactive map. It’s much more user-friendly, making it a breeze for mineral and royalty owners to find the information they need!
Knowing your legal description makes it easy to locate your oil and gas wells. Not sure where to find the legal description? It’s on your property deed and your oil and gas lease.
Kansas uses the Public Land Survey System (PLSS), so your legal description will consist of a section, range, and township.
For example, in Ness County, Kansas, you might see something like:
Section 1, Township 18 South, Range 24 West
Need more help? Contact us, and we will be happy to look it up for you!
Use KGS’s GIS map to:
- Locate wells
- View well info (depth, dates, fields, operator, etc.)
- View well status (active, plugged, water flood, dry holes, etc.)
- View production history
- And more
Ness County Oil Wells
This map shows a typical area of Ness County with a mix of dry holes, producing wells, and old plugged wells. As you can see, there are more plugged wells than producing wells. Because oil is a finite resource, all of these wells will eventually run dry.
Many of these wells in this area of the map only produce a fraction of the oil they once produced and will probably be plugged soon.
There are very few opportunities for new development in Kansas because most energy companies prefer to drill long, fracked horizontal wells in the popular shale basins (less risk and more potential for profit).
Ness County Kansas Resources for Mineral Owners
The best way to maximize your mineral rights is to know what you own. Knowledge is power and these links may help you figure out what you own and be a better mineral manager.
Interactive Oil & Gas Map
The Kansas Geological Society maintains an interactive map where you can look up your mineral rights using the legal description on your deed (or lease). Need help? Call us, and we can look it up for you.
Ness County Treasurer
Ness Kansas mineral owners (over a minimum value) must pay annual Ad Valorem taxes to the county treasurer. They do not have an online system, but you can call for information.
Deed Records
The Ness County Register of Deeds, is responsible for keeping public records related to “real property” such as land and mineral deeds. Need a copy of your deed? You can search using their online system.
How We Value Mineral Rights
There are many factors that play into the value of mineral rights. These include location, producing vs. non-producing properties, current oil and gas prices, well production figures, lease terms, and even the operator of the well or wells. We also look at the risks of buying and owning minerals that you are interested in selling.
Location
Minerals in the hottest shale plays are more valuable than those in older fields with conventional wells.
Producing vs. Non-Producing
Producing minerals are often worth more than non-producing minerals because they are generating revenue.
Oil & Gas Prices
When oil and gas prices drop, revenue drops, and sometimes operators are unable to continue operating the well.
Production
Highly productive wells (and off-set wells) can increase the value of your minerals.
Lease Terms
Favorable lease terms (such as a 25% royalty reservation) positively impact the value of the leased minerals.
Operator
A small number of operators are unethical, and their reputation automatically devalues your minerals.
Where We Buy Mineral Rights
We buy both producing and non-producing minerals in all oil and gas states. However, we are especially interested in Texas and Kansas mineral rights.
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We even buy minerals in more obscure states, which produce very little oil and gas compared to other states.
Why Sell?
Why People Sell Their Mineral Rights
I am putting my affairs in order. I don’t want to burden my kids with the hassle of transferring ownership and managing small mineral rights. When my sister passed away, my niece and nephew had to hire an attorney to help them with the minerals. I don’t want my kids to go through that.
I inherited my mineral rights so they were sentimental, but I don’t really want to bother with managing them and filing extra tax returns. I decided to sell and use the money as a down payment on my house.
I had no idea how fast the oil production would decline. My checks are only 20% of what they were a few years ago. I should have sold my mineral rights when the wells were brand new and still generating huge royalties.
My oil wells have been producing for decades and the reserves are almost depleted. Once the wells are plugged, the value will be significantly lower. I’d rather cash out now.
I inherited mineral rights, but don’t want to be involved with fracking and fossil fuels. I would prefer to support renewable energy and do my part to reverse climate change.