Listen: Disputes over gas royalties fester throughout oil and gas states

Amy Sisk

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Amy Sisk reports for StateImpact Pennsylvania and WESA, Pittsburgh's NPR member station. She comes to Pennsylvania from another energy-rich state, North Dakota, where she told stories from coal mines, wind farms and the Bakken oil patch for Inside Energy and Prairie Public Broadcasting. Amy's stories often air on NPR, including those from the eight months she spent following the Dakota Access Pipeline protests. A reporting trip to the Bakken during its boom years sparked her interest in energy. Ever since, she's covered the industry -- from the way it is regulated to its influence on policy to its impact on people and the environment.

Michael Rubinkam / AP Photo

A shale gas drilling rig in Washington, Pa.

March 16, 2018 | 5:27 PM

Michael Rubinkam / AP Photo

A shale gas drilling rig in Washington, Pa.

When a company wants to drill for natural gas, it will typically approach the person who owns the underground minerals in that location and negotiate a lease. That lease grants the mineral owner a certain percentage of the revenue generated from the gas well, known as the royalty.

But as StateImpact Pennsylvania has reported, disputes can arise over royalty money, particularly when companies take deductions for “post-production costs.” The costs often include expenses associated with transporting and treating the gas.

While Pennsylvania landowners have complained for years about deductions, now landowners across the country are echoing their concerns.

StateImpact reporters Marie Cusick and Amy Sisk discussed the latest surrounding these disputes today on “The Confluence,” a show produced by Pittsburgh NPR station WESA.

You can listen here: