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Board approves Pocahontas Gas pooling and conversion of BB‑15 ventilation hole to producing CBM well
Summary
The board approved Pocahontas Gas LLC’s BB‑15 pooling petition (docket VGO24‑1217‑4299), authorizing production from a converted ventilation hole; the company reported it holds 28.4699% of the interest and estimated $47,281.32 in allocable costs for BB‑15.
The Virginia Gas and Oil Board voted May 20 to approve Pocahontas Gas LLC’s petition to pool unit BB‑15 and to allow production from a converted ventilation hole in an unsealed mined area (docket VGO24‑1217‑4299).
Kelly Barry, senior analyst for Pocahontas Gas LLC, testified that BB‑15 is a mined‑out, unsealed area where the company seeks to produce coalbed methane by converting an existing ventilation hole (VVH) to a producing well. She said the conversion was permitted (permit AA15262) and the applicant incorporated her earlier testimony from the H37 docket into this record.
Barry reported that Pocahontas Gas holds 28.4699% of the CBM interest in BB‑15 and that the remaining unleashed interests total 71.5301%. Because the work is a conversion of an existing hole, the applicant’s estimated allocable cost for the unit is small relative to drilling new wells; Exhibit N lists $47,281.32 as the grand total allocable to BB‑15.
The filing includes a proposed order and the same recommended lease terms offered in the H37 matter: a one‑eighth royalty and a five‑year, $5‑per‑acre paid‑up lease for any owners deemed leased.
Board members asked procedural questions about the maps, the cemetery tract that contains many small interests, and how this conversion relates to previously pulled AA15 unit actions. Barry said the AA15 pull had already taken place and that conversion of the existing VVH (AA15262) was permitted and complete.
A motion to approve the BB‑15 pooling passed unanimously by roll call (Mr. Harris, Mr. Jansen, Mr. Cochran, Mrs. Gibson and Mr. Owens voted yes). The board approved the proposed order and asked staff to maintain records and notify interested owners as required.
