Mineral Rights Buyers in Belmont County Ohio

Are you a mineral rights owner in Belmont County, Ohio?

True to its name (which means “beautiful mountain”), Belmont County features some fantastic landscapes. Whether you’re looking out at the green fields and trees of Union township, strolling down the streets of historic downtown St. Clairsville, or looking out over the Ohio river from Bellaire, Belmont County offers many great places to live and work.

Covering over 540 square miles, and bordering Monroe, Jefferson, Guernsey, Harrison and Noble counties, along with West Virginia, Belmont County also boasts another great resource: natural gas from the Utica Shale formation deep below the surface. This resource has made Belmont County into one of the state’s top producers of oil and gas.

You may have seen many headlines like this one over the past several years: “Belmont County leads the way in oil and gas production in Ohio”. Just last summer, Columbus Business First noted Belmont as one of the counties in Ohio with the wells producing the most gas in the state.

Where Oil & Gas companies are drilling in Belmont County

At Gateway Royalty, we have an office located in St. Clairsville and you’ve probably met us at the Belmont County Fair over the years. All this is to say we’re very familiar with the area and we pay close attention to what’s going on with oil and gas production here.

If you’re a mineral rights or royalties owner living Belmont County, what should you expect in the near future? Drilling has been pretty steady in Belmont over the past few years. That probably won’t change anytime soon. But drilling isn’t happening everywhere in the county. It’s mostly focused on certain areas.

What we’ve seen in Belmont County is most of the drilling activity is focused on the central, eastern side of the county—which would be in the dry gas window.

There are some one-offs from operators like Eclipse on the western side of the county, but the majority of rigs right now are located in the central and estern parts of Belmont County. We expect most of the activity to continue in those areas.

From an infrastructure standpoint, it’s a little easier for companies to get gas from a dry window than it is from a liquid window. With a liquid window, you need a plant to process and treat the gas—which is another reason development can take a little longer in liquid windows versus dry widows. There’s just more infrastructure that needs to be in place.

That’s just something to keep in mind if you’re an oil & gas mineral owner. Depending on the situation and location, even if there’s drilling in your area, these things can take time—often more time than you expect. And oil and gas companies can shift their focus or priorities at any time depending on a variety of factors.

Why Belmont County landowners consider selling mineral rights or royalties.

At Gateway, we’ve purchased mineral rights and royalties from multiple landowners in Belmont County, Ohio, over the years. Why do landowners in Belmont decide to sell their mineral rights or royalties? For different reasons.

Some landowners just don’t want to wait the months or years it can take for their royalties to roll in. Others do it for tax purposes. Still others do it because they’re dealing with a specific financial situation.

In the case of Barbara Spencer, a retired widow who lives in Belmont County, she sold her oil and gas mineral interest so she could save her home and all the memories she has in it. Working with Gateway enabled her to focus on spending time with her grandchildren and great children, some of whom live right next door.

Meanwhile, James Wilcox, who lives in Wayne Township with his family, made a deal with Gateway so he and his wife could live a life of more financial freedom. By partnering with Gateway, James and his wife were able to retire young and do more of the things they wanted—like relax and travel.

If you live in Belmont County, Ohio, and you’re thinking about selling your mineral rights or royalties, now might be a great time to do so. Contact Gateway Royalty today to find out if we’ll make you an offer on your mineral rights.