The Navajo times. [volume], April 01, 1960, Image 1

About The Navajo times. [volume] (Window Rock, Ariz.) 1959-1960

Image provided by: Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records; Phoenix, AZ

                
NORTHERN ARIZONA UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
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Oil and gas arlivities on 'he N 'vajo
Reservation started hack in 1921. In
fact, the first lease was approved foif
the Midwest Oil Refining Company dat
ed November 4, 1921. The second and
third leases on the Navajo Reservation
dates back to December 21, 1921. These
three wells are the original and begin
ning of the oil and gas history on the.
Navajo Reservation, and they are still
producing to date. Then there was the
lapse of s o m (> twenty years up until
1942, when the Coiiiin ntal Oil Com
pany and other companies became in
terested in the helium reserve. These
wells were located in what is known as
Rattlesnake F i e 1 d just immediately
west of Shiprock. New Mexico.
In 194 b the current series began.
There has been little aciiv.ty in this
new discovery until 1954. when the
Shell Oil Company hit in the what is
now known as the De ert Creek area,
south of Aneth Field. In late 1955 Tex
aco discovered tin* Aneth pool, and an
intesive drilling began in 195 b. The
Aneth Field was largely developed by
1958. The least* salt's in 195 b io 1958
catered a huge area, especially m the
San .1 u a n County ! tali and Apache
County-Ari/ona. Approx mutely 1.440.-
COO acres of the reservation land is pres
ently under leases. Approximately 000
leases have been approved, out ol which
50 of these leases are producing either
oil or gas. Out of the 50 leases which
PUBLISHED BY THE EDUCATION COMMITTEE, NAVAJO TRIBE, WINDOW ROCK, ARIZONA
Volume I, Number 6 April—l96o
“BLACK GOLD”
PROMOTES NAVAJO DEVELOPMENT
Utilization for the Future
'
Drilling Derrick Being Blared
in Operation in Rattlesnake Field
A v
p n ram
\ 4c i
are in production now, there are 500
wells in production, mostly in the An
eth area. I he v e are so m e other areas,
for instance, there are 200 wells produc
ing in the Horseshoe Canyon north of
Shiprock. New Mexico.
The royalties which have been going
to the Tribe deposited in the United
States Treasury was % or 12V2% of
the v a 1 lie ol the produced substance.
1 his has been the Federal regulation for
over m a n y years. Beginning in 1958,
t h e royalty w a s increased in proven
areas to 1b%% or 1/b of tin* produced
substance, and again last year the leases
were offered by bidding on royalty bas
is rather than on bonus. These leases in
tin* proven areas went as high as 77.1%
or just over % of the production as roy
alties. Very little production has been
realized on this basis and it is all in the
future*. Eventually when most of these
leases with the bids on royalty basis
have gone into production, the Tribe
will realize a greater of royalties than
they are receiving at the present time.
Willi bidding on the leases in the last
y c a r s. the bonus payments have ac
counted for most of the income to the
Navajo Tribe up to 1959. but now the
royalties from production are becoming
more significant. In the last 10 years
the total bonus and royalty payments
to the Navajo Tribe totals $80.77(3,064.-
—Continued on page 4