A landman is an agent hired by gas companies to negotiate with landowners in order to get a lease signed at the lowest possible price per acre with the lowest possible royalty payments for any extracted gas.
In a section titled "Talking Points for Selling Oil and Gas Lease Rights," the "Landman’s Manual" explains in detail how landmen should talk to landowners, what topics they should talk about and what topics to avoid. The manual says that "successful field agents understand what points to focus on so the benefits outweigh the cons."
According to the manual, most landowners don’t know the difference between hydraulic fracturing and slick water hydraulic fracturing. The landmen are told to use this fact to their advantage, but to avoid the topic if a landowner does know about slick water fracturing.
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The manual stresses the importance of telling landowners that China bought more oil than the U.S. last year.
"Fear of foreign encroachment is the biggest asset we have in selling our development strategy," it states.
Whenever the conversation with a landowner turns to local issues or environmental hazards, the landmen are instructed to reiterate the fact that China bought more gas than the U.S. last year.
Landmen are told to avoid talking about property values. According to the manual, multiple studies have found that property values decrease for land with oil and gas leases on the property and several major banks have stopped issuing mortgages on these properties. If backed into this issue, the landmen are told to "talk about the potential revenues and the overall needs of the nation" and to once again reiterate the point that China bought more gas than the U.S. last year.
The manual instructs the landmen to talk to men whenever possible because "men are more likely to sign than women. Men don’t like to believe that they know less than you do, so they are less likely to ask questions."
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) August 23, 2011 - While many North Texans are being asked to conserve water during a statewide drought, three large pipelines are pulling millions of gallons of water out of the Trinity River in Fort Worth, near West Seventh Street.And It's Growing the Franchise.
The pipelines cross over several roads and trails in Trinity River Park. They were put into place just days before water restrictions are expected to shut off sprinklers in Fort Worth, leaving lawns to dry out.
“They’re just like big straws,” explained nearby resident Don Young, who has seen these pipelines before. “They just suck water from the river or lake or wherever.”
Where are the pipelines taking the water? Follow them past raised sidewalk sections and roadway crossings and you will end up at a natural gas well located just outside of Trinity River Park, operated by Chesapeake Energy.
