You have 20 days to elect. Here is the arithmetic for each option, shown plainly.
When the Oklahoma Corporation Commission issues a pooling order, every unleased mineral owner in the unit must choose between the cash-and-royalty options listed in the order or paying their share of well costs to participate as a working interest owner. The election window is typically 20 days from the order. Not answering usually defaults you to the lowest royalty option with the highest bonus.
We wrote a plain-English walkthrough of the whole process in I Got a Pooling Order, Now What? and the legal background in Forced Pooling in Oklahoma. This page is the math.
Enter your acreage, the unit, and the options exactly as they appear in your pooling order. Add the AFE from the order to see what participating would cost you.
Decimals shown are your revenue decimal under each option: net acres ÷ unit × royalty × allocation. Cost to participate = (net ÷ unit × allocation) × AFE. The pooling order controls; if its numbers differ from your division order later, check before signing.
Taking a bonus and royalty is the no-risk choice: you are paid up front and carry none of the well cost. Participating means writing a check for your share of the AFE, plus any cost overruns, in exchange for the full working interest share of revenue. Most family owners take a royalty option; participation makes sense mainly for owners with the capital and appetite to underwrite dry-hole and mechanical risk.
Higher bonus pairs with lower royalty, and the tradeoff depends on how good the well will be. A strong well repays the royalty difference quickly, which is why owners in proven areas often take the highest royalty and zero bonus. In fringe areas where the well may disappoint, the cash bonus in hand can be worth more than the extra royalty ever becomes. The honest answer is that the operator's geologists know more about the well than you do, and they usually elect the highest royalty for themselves.
You are deemed to have accepted the default election in the order, typically the highest cash bonus with the lowest royalty. You will still be paid, but on terms you did not choose. Twenty days passes fast, and the deadline is jurisdictional: the Commission will not extend it because the mail was slow.
We read pooling orders every week, and our principal spent a landman career around these hearings. Call or text 918-984-1645 with your order in hand, or send it through the form. Straight answer, no charge, whether or not you ever sell.
Ask Us About Your Order