Geothermal Resource Leasing and Geothermal Resources Unit Agreements

This final rule revises the Bureau of Land Management's geothermal resources leasing and unit agreement regulations to implement the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The rule restructures regulations concerning the general geothermal leasing process and revises regulations on royalties and readjustment of lease terms, conditions, and rentals. The rule also revises regulations on lease duration and work commitment requirements, annual rental and credit of rental towards royalty, unit and communitization agreements, and acreage limitations. Additional revisions required by the Energy Policy Act include various technical corrections. Other changes in sections unaffected by changes in the statute clarify existing procedures, improve grammatical construction, conform the regulations to new administrative regulatory standards, and correct existing errors.