Oklahoma § 17-53.3 - Abandoned oil and gas well-site equipment - State lien

§ 17-53.3. Abandoned oil and gas well-site equipment - State lien

A. The State of Oklahoma shall have a lien upon any abandoned

oil and gas well-site equipment situated upon a lease site,

including but not limited to production and storage structures,

along with their contents, in an amount equal to the cost of

plugging all wells associated with said lease and restoring the

site. The lien created by this act shall attach only to abandoned

oil and gas well-site equipment located on or affixed to an oil or

gas well which has been or is required to be plugged, replugged or

repaired by rules of the Commission.

B. Well-site equipment is presumed abandoned if:

1. For longer than one (1) year, the well has shown no activity

in terms of production, injection, disposal or testing, and has not

otherwise been maintained in compliance with plugging rules; and

2.

a.

the last operator of record is without valid surety as

required by Section 318.1 of Title 52 of the Oklahoma

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission

Statutes and cannot be located by the Corporation

Commission after diligent search, or

b.

the last operator of record has plugging liability in

excess of the amount of such operator's surety as

filed with the Corporation Commission.

The presumption of abandonment shall apply only for purposes of the

lien created herein and shall have no effect upon the term,

duration, or continued existence of any property or contract right

in the premises.

C. The lien created by this section shall be perfected against

the equipment when notice of the lien is filed in the office of the

county clerk of the county or counties where the equipment is

situated. Upon receipt, the county clerk shall record the notice in

the tract index and in the mechanic's lien journal. The notice

shall contain a description of each item upon which a lien is

claimed, and a legal description of the site upon which the

equipment is situated.

D. The lien provided for in this section shall be subject to

all prior perfected liens.

E. The lien created by this section shall be assignable by the

Corporation Commission.

For purposes of this act the term "abandoned well" shall mean

those wells that are described and listed in a report published by

the Corporation Commission identifying oil or gas wells which have

been determined to be abandoned or orphaned by the Corporation

Commission as a result of bankruptcy, inability to find the owner,

or for other reasons.

Added by Laws 1992, c. 362, § 1, emerg. eff. June 4, 1992. Amended

by Laws 1995, c. 328, § 3, eff. July 1, 1995.