Ohio Announces Changes To The Procedure For Unitization Orders Under R.C. 1509.28
On May 9, 2014, the Ohio Division of Oil and Gas Resources Management announced changes in the procedure for obtaining orders approving drilling units. The procedure, established by R.C. 1509.28, authorizes the Division to approve drilling units that contain unleased properties and properties leased to operators who decline to agree to inclusion in the proposed drilling unit. The procedure is most often used to assemble units for horizontal drilling. The changes include extending the minimum period of time between the filing of an application and the hearing on the application from 45 to 120 days, requiring the submission of additional information by affidavit in the application, and providing additional notice to the public of the hearing. The changes appear in the Division’s guidelines for administering the unitization statute.