Active Acquisition State
Prefer to talk? Call (432) 400-4602
Louisiana is one of the top oil and gas producing states in the country, with the Haynesville Shale of northwest Louisiana driving the bulk of contemporary dry-gas production and the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale and legacy Gulf Coast plays adding meaningful volumes. Louisiana is the only US state with a civil-law legal system inherited from the French and Spanish — mineral interests pass through succession rather than common-law probate, and the state has its own substantive law of mineral servitudes under the Louisiana Mineral Code (Title 31 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes). We actively buy mineral interests, royalty interests, NPRI, and ORRI across the state.
We see the most deal flow in these counties, but we consider mineral rights in every producing county in the state:
The Haynesville Shale in northwest Louisiana is dominated by a handful of large dry-gas operators: Comstock Resources (the largest acreage holder in the play), Aethon Energy (private, with the largest Haynesville rig count for much of 2023–24), Expand Energy (formed by the 2024 Chesapeake/Southwestern merger; absorbed Vine Energy in 2021), Rockcliff Energy, and GEP Haynesville. Smaller independents include Tellurian Production, Indigo Natural Resources, and several privates. Goodrich Petroleum has historically been active in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale. Coastal and offshore production involves Hilcorp Energy and a long list of legacy independents.
Louisiana lease royalty rates in the Haynesville typically range from 1/5 (20%) to 1/4 (25%) on competitive tracts, with 1/8 (12.5%) common on legacy leases. Louisiana has its own Mineral Code (La. R.S. Title 31) that codifies the law of mineral servitudes — including the 10-year prescription of nonuse that terminates an unused mineral servitude in favor of the surface owner. Production from any well on the tract interrupts prescription. The Pugh clause is well-established in Louisiana lease drafting, and forced-pooling provisions are governed by Louisiana statute and the Louisiana Office of Conservation. Civil-law contract interpretation rules apply to lease disputes, which changes the analysis of ambiguous lease provisions relative to common-law states.
We buy mineral interests, royalty interests, NPRI, and ORRI across all 64 Louisiana parishes (Louisiana uses "parish" instead of "county").
Not sure which type you own? Start with our mineral rights glossary for plain-English definitions of MI, RI, NPRI, and ORRI.
Louisiana severance tax on oil is 12.5% of gross value at the wellhead as of 2026; severance tax on natural gas is a fixed per-Mcf rate adjusted annually by the Louisiana Department of Revenue (verify current rate). Parishes assess ad valorem property tax on producing mineral interests separately. Louisiana is the only state where mineral interests pass under civil-law succession rather than common-law probate; mineral servitudes are governed by Louisiana Revised Statutes Title 31 (the Louisiana Mineral Code) and prescribe (terminate by nonuse) after 10 years unless interrupted by drilling or production on the tract.
Under Louisiana Revised Statutes 31:27, a mineral servitude prescribes (terminates) after 10 years if no good-faith drilling operation or production has occurred on the tract during that time. Production from any well on the tract — including a well drilled and operated by a different operator — interrupts prescription and restarts the 10-year clock. The rule reflects Louisiana's civil-law principle that mineral rights are a use right rather than an absolute estate; if not exercised, the rights revert to the surface owner. For sellers, this means an unproductive long-dormant mineral interest in Louisiana may already have prescribed; we run a prescription analysis as part of underwriting before making an offer.
Louisiana is a civil-law jurisdiction. Inherited mineral interests pass through succession rather than common-law probate. Successions are filed in the parish of the decedent's domicile (Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure art. 2811) and may be testate (under a will) or intestate (by Louisiana intestacy rules). Louisiana retains a limited form of forced heirship for descendants under age 24 or with permanent disabilities under La. Civ. Code art. 1493. Community property between spouses applies to mineral interests acquired during marriage. We handle the title curative work for sales — running the succession, recording the judgment of possession, and clearing title — without requiring you to retain Louisiana counsel.
DeSoto, Caddo, Red River, Bossier, and Sabine parishes are the core Haynesville producing area. DeSoto produces more gas than any other Louisiana parish and is the heart of the play. Bienville, Webster, and Natchitoches parishes form the outer fairway. The Haynesville sits at 10,000–13,500 feet across this area, producing dry gas at high pressure that flows directly to Gulf Coast LNG export terminals via the Acadian, Cameron, and other pipeline systems.
Louisiana imposes severance tax on oil at 12.5% of gross value at the wellhead as of 2026. Severance tax on natural gas is a per-Mcf rate adjusted annually by the Louisiana Department of Revenue (verify current rate). Reduced rates apply to certain incapable, stripper, and inactive wells under La. R.S. 47:633. Parish-level ad valorem property tax on producing mineral interests is assessed separately by each parish assessor. The combined severance plus parish ad valorem effective burden on Louisiana royalty interests typically runs above the WV/PA/OH range due to the higher oil rate.
The Louisiana Mineral Code (La. R.S. 31:1 et seq., enacted in 1974) codifies the substantive law of mineral rights in Louisiana and replaces what would, in a common-law state, be a body of case-law-developed rules. Key differences: (1) mineral interests are servitudes rather than real estate, (2) the 10-year prescription of nonuse, (3) different rules around the surface estate, mineral lease, and royalty interest, and (4) civil-law contract interpretation rules apply to oil and gas leases. Operators and title counsel routinely work across both systems, but the Louisiana approach materially changes both lease drafting and dispute resolution.
If you live in one of the major Louisiana metros and own or inherited mineral interests anywhere in the state, the pages below cover the local mechanics specific to selling from your area.
Many Louisianamineral and royalty interests are held by heirs who live elsewhere. If that's you, our metro pages address the inheritance, ancillary-probate, and tax mechanics specific to your home state:
See all mineral rights FAQ.
State-specific guides covering the legal mechanics that come up most often for owners considering a sale.