EX-10.5 5 dex105.htm UTAH STATE MINERAL LEASE FORM-GEOTHERMAL ENERGY LEASE, ML 50856 Director’s Agenda Due [ILLEGIBLE] MINERAL LEASE NO. ML 50856 GRANT : SCH UTAH STATE MINERAL LEASE FORM GEOTHERMAL ENERGY LEASE
Exhibit 10.5
(4/1/07)
Director’s Agenda Due | [ILLEGIBLE] | MINERAL LEASE NO. | ML 50856 | |||
GRANT : SCH |
UTAH STATE MINERAL LEASE FORM
THIS MINING LEASE AND AGREEMENT (the “Lease”) is entered into and is effective as of June 1, 2007, by and between the STATE OF UTAH, acting by and through the SCHOOL AND INSTITUTIONAL TRUST LANDS ADMINISTRATION, 000 Xxxx 000 Xxxxx, Xxxxx 000, Xxxx Xxxx Xxxx, Xxxx 00000 (“Lessor”),
XXXXX TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
0000 X. XXXXXXXX XXXXX, #000
XXXXX, XX 00000
having a business address as shown above (“Lessee”).
That the State of Utah, as Lessor, in consideration of the rentals, royalties, and other financial consideration paid or required to be paid by Lessee, and the covenants of Lessee set forth below, does hereby GRANT AND LEASE to Lessee the exclusive right and privilege to explore for, drill for, produce, remove, extract, store, utilize, treat, process, convert, and sell, geothermal energy and related “products”, including steam, and hot water (collectively “the leased substances”), covered by this lease and located within the boundaries of the following-described tract of land (the “Leased Premises”) located in BEAVER County, State of Utah:
T30S. RI2W, SLB&M.
SEC. 15: LOTS I(40.11), 2(40.07), 3(40.04), X 0/0XX 0/0, X 0/0XX 0/0, XX 0/0XX 1/4
SEC. 22: S 1/2NE 0/0, X 0/0XX 0/0, XX 1/4
Containing 640.22 acres, more or less,
Together with the right and privilege to make use of the surface and subsurface of the Leased Premises for uses reasonably incident to the production of leased substances by Lessee on the Leased Premises or on other lands under the control of Lessee or produced in connection with operations on the Leased Premises, including, but not limited to roads, pipelines, utility and power lines and other structures and improvements and other purposes incident to development of the leased substance; and the mitigation, restoration and reclamation of the surface.
This Mining Lease and Agreement is subject to, and Lessee hereby agrees to and accepts, the following covenants, terms, and conditions:
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1.1 | The word “products”(collectively “leased substances”) as used herein, means thermal energy in the form of hot water, steam, by-products thereof, steam condensates, as well as or electrical and other energy derived, generated or manufactured from water, steam condensates and other by-products derived or obtained from the geothermal leasehold estate. The phrase “sufficient commercial quantities” as used herein, means that amount and character of products extracted from the subsurface geothermal estate which can be produced from the leasehold sufficient for commercial sale thereof, or which would warrant construction of facilities for processing or sale of such product or of products. |
This mineral lease grants Lessee the right, subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, to extract the leased substances. In the event that minerals or materials other than the leased substances are discovered during lease operations, Lessee shall promptly notify the Lessor and shall not further disturb or remove the other minerals or materials without Lessor’s written permission. Upon notifying Lessor of such discovery the Lessee shall have preference in making application to the Lessor for a lease or permit covering the unleased minerals or materials that are discovered. There has not been determined to date by judicial decision whether geothermal steam, hot water and other water not associated with chemicals constituting minerals at depths below the surface where potable water may be developed by drilling, constitutes part of the surface estate sold by the State of Utah with a reservation of minerals to the State. Nor has it been determined by scientific discoveries or analysis to date, whether geothermal steam and hot water at depths where the same may be discovered below the surface of the earth, are unassociated with and independent of chemicals constituting minerals of the mineral estate reserved to the State of Utah. The State claims said substances geologically are part of the mineral estate and the surface owner other than the State of Utah in not legally entitled to said resources and substances. In the event the surface owner in said lands sold or conveyed by the State of Utah with reservation of the minerals to the State, shall make any claim to geothermal steam, hot water, and other water, whether by executing a geothermal energy lease or otherwise makes claim, and a dispute arises between the State of Utah and the surface owner as to whether any geothermal steam, hot water or any other substance or source of energy generated below the surface, is nonmineral in character and independent of minerals reserved to the State of Utah, when and if there is an adjudication by the Supreme Court of the State of Utah adjudging such geothermal steam, hot water or any other underground source of energy to be nonmineral in character and independent of and not part of the mineral estate and to belong to or to be part of the surface estate, the State of Utah as Lessor shall refund that portion of the royalty which can be ascertained to have been paid for any substances adjudged to be independent of and not part of the mineral estate, upon ascertainment of what recovered substances is mineral and what is nonmineral and the proportionate value of the materials or substances nonmineral in character, to which the surface owner would be entitled by virtue of such judicial determination. Under no conditions will any rental paid by the lessee to the lessor be refunded.
2.1 | Rights-of-Way and Easements. Lessor reserves the right, following consultation with the Lessee, to establish rights- of-way and easements upon, through or over the Leased Premises, under terms and conditions that will not unreasonably interfere with operations under this Lease, for roads, pipelines, electric transmission lines, transportation and utility corridors, mineral access, and any other purpose deemed reasonably necessary by Lessor. |
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3. | TERM OF LEASE; MINIMUM ROYALTIES; READJUSTMENT. |
3.1 | Primary Term. This Lease is granted for a “primary term” of 10 years from the date hereinabove first written. |
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4. | BONUS BID. Lessee agrees to pay Lessor an initial bonus bid in the sum of $9,662.88 dollars as partial consideration for Lessor’s issuance of this Lease, payable in cash prior to execution of this lease. The initial bonus bid may not be credited against annual rentals, annual minimum royalties or production royalties accruing pursuant to this lease. |
5. | RENTALS/MINIMUM RENTALS. Lessee agrees to pay Lessor an annual rental of $1.00 for each acre and fractional part thereof within the Leased Premises; provided however, the minimum annual rental required by this lease shall be $500.00 irrespective of acreage. Lessee shall promptly pay annual rentals each year in advance on or before the anniversary date of the Effective Date. The rental payment for a mineral lease year may be credited against production royalties only as they accrue for that lease year. The Lessee may not credit rentals paid for one lease year against production royalties accruing to another lease year. Rental payments may not be credited against minimum royalties or bonus bids accruing to any lease year. |
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6. | ROYALTIES. |
6.5 | Suspension, Waiver or Reduction of Rents or Royalties. Lessor, to the extent not prohibited by applicable law, is authorized to waive, suspend, or reduce the rental or minimum royalty, or reduce the royalty applicable with respect to the entire Lease, whenever in Lessor’s sole judgment it is necessary to do so in order to promote development, or whenever in the Lessor’s sole judgment the Lease cannot be successfully operated under the terms provided herein and continued operations are in the trust land beneficiaries best interest. |
7. | RECORDKEEPING; INSPECTION; AUDITS. |
7.1 | Registered Agent; Records. Lessee shall maintain a registered agent within the State of Utah to whom any and all notices may be sent by Lessor and upon whom process may be served. Lessee shall also maintain an office within the State of Utah containing originals or copies of all maps, engineering data, permitting materials, books, records or contracts (whether such documents are in paper or electronic form) generated by Lessee that pertain in any way to leased substances production, output and valuation; mine operations; assays; processing returns; leased substances sales and dispositions; and calculation of royalties. Lessee shall maintain such documents for at least seven years after the date of the leased substances production to which the documents pertain. |
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7.2 | Inspection. Lessor’s employees and authorized agents at Lessor’s sole risk and expense shall have the right to enter the Leased Premises, to go on any part of the Leased Premises to examine, inspect, survey and take measurements for the purposes of verifying production amounts and proper lease operations. Upon reasonable notice to Lessee, Lessor’s employees and authorized agents shall further have the right to audit, examine and copy (at Lessor’s expense) all documents described in paragraph 7.1, Registered Agent; Records, whether such documents are located on the leased premises or elsewhere. Lessee shall furnish all conveniences necessary for said inspection, survey, or examination; provided, however, that such inspections shall be conducted in a manner that is in conformance with all applicable mine safety regulations and does not unreasonably interfere with Lessee’s operations. |
8. | USE OF SURFACE ESTATE. |
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9. | APPLICABLE LAWS AND REGULATIONS; HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES |
9.1 | Trust Lands Statute and Regulations. This Lease is issued pursuant to, and is subject to, the provisions of Title 53C, Utah Code Annotated, 1953, as amended. Further, Lessee and this lease are subject to and shall comply with all current and future rules and regulations adopted by the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration and its successor agencies. |
9.2 | Other Applicable Laws and Regulations. Lessee shall comply with all applicable federal, state and local statutes, regulations, and ordinances, including without limitation the Utah Mined Land Reclamation Act, applicable statutes and regulations relating to mine safety and health, and applicable statutes, regulations and ordinances relating to public health, pollution control, management of hazardous substances and environmental protection. |
9.5 |
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defined in 40 Code of Federal Regulations §302.4, or used oil as defined in Utah Administrative Code R315-15, discharged (as defined at 33 U.S.C. §1321(a)(2)), deposited or released within the Leased Premises, either on the surface or underground, and that all remedial actions necessary have been taken to protect human health and the environment with respect to such substances. Lessee shall additionally provide to Lessor a complete list of all hazardous substances, hazardous materials, and their respective Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Numbers, used or stored on, or delivered to, the Leased Premises. Such disclosure will be in addition to any other disclosure required by law or agreement. |
10. | BONDING. |
11. | WATER RIGHTS. |
11.1 | Water Rights in Name of Lessor. It is understood that water or steam or some subsequent condensation from geothermal sources might be subject to application to beneficial use under the water laws of Utah. Prior to commencement of any drilling operations within the leasehold area, Lessee shall apply to the State Division of Water Rights for and obtain a drilling permit to drill any well within the leasehold area. Lessee also shall comply with the rules and regulations of such State Division of Water Rights whether such well so drilled shall reach any geothermal source or whether the steam or any subsequent condensations of steam, or water ultimately cooled, actually shall be applied to beneficial use under the laws of the State. If Lessee files to appropriate water for use in association with this lease or operations upon the Leased Premises, the filing for such water right shall be made by Lessee in the name of Lessor at no cost to Lessor, and such water right shall become an appurtenance to the Leased Premises, subject to Lessee’s right to use such water right at no cost during the term of this Lease. |
11.2 |
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have forty-five (45) days to exercise its option to acquire the water by payment to Lessee of the estimated fair market value. If Lessor disagrees with Lessee’s estimate of fair market value, Lessor shall notify Lessee of its disagreement within the 45 day option exercise period. The fair market value of the water right shall then be appraised by a single appraiser mutually acceptable to both parties, which appraisal shall be final and not subject to review or appeal. If the parties cannot agree upon the choice of an appraiser, the fair market value of the water right shall be determined by a court of competent jurisdiction. Conveyance of any water right pursuant to this paragraph shall be by quit claim deed. |
12. | ASSIGNMENT OR SUBLEASE: OVERRIDING ROYALTIES. |
12.2 | Binding Effect. All of the terms and provisions of this Lease shall be binding upon and shall inure to the benefit of their respective successors, assigns, and sublessees. |
13. | OPERATIONS. |
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13.3 | Plan of Operations - Modification. In the event that material changes are required to the plan of operations during the course of mining, Lessee shall submit a modification of the plan of operations to the Lessor. Routine adjustments to the plan of operations based upon geologic circumstances encountered during day-to-day mining operations do not require the submission of a modification. If the proposed changes require emergency action by Lessor, then the Lessee shall so notify the Lessor at the time of submission of the modification and the parties shall use their best efforts to meet the Lessee’s time schedule regarding implementation of the changes. Non-emergency modifications will be reviewed promptly by Lessor to insure that there is no waste of economically recoverable mineral reserves pursuant to the plan of operations, as modified, and Lessor shall notify lessee in writing of its approval or modification of the proposed modification. Modifications shall be deemed approved by Lessor if Lessor has not otherwise notified Lessee within thirty (30) days of filing. |
14. | EQUIPMENT: RESTORATION. |
14.1 |
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compliance with applicable law, and further provided that Lessee provides Lessor with financial or other assurances sufficient in Lessor’s reasonable discretion to protect Lessor from future environmental liability with respect to such abandonment or any associated hazardous waste spills or releases. Lessee shall identify and locate on the mine map the location of all equipment abandoned on the Lease Premises. |
15. | MULTIPLE MINERAL DEVELOPMENT |
The Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration may designate any lands under its authority as a Multiple Mineral Development Area (MMD). In designated MMDs the Lessor may require in addition to the terms and conditions of this lease such stipulations or restrictions as may be necessary in the determination of the Director to integrate and coordinate the operations of lessees having an interest in the lands in order to conserve natural resource and optimize revenues to the trust-land beneficiaries.
16. | DEFAULT |
17. | MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. |
17.1 |
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limitation claims for death, personal injury, property damage, and unpaid wages and benefits. Lessee further agrees to indemnify and hold Lessor harmless for, from and against all claims, demands, liabilities, damages and penalties arising out of any failure of Lessee to comply with any of Lessee’s obligations under this Lease, including without limitation reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs. Lessee may be required to obtain insurance in a type and in an amount acceptable to Lessor, naming the Trust Lands Administration, its employees, its Board of trustees and the State of Utah as co-insured parties under the policy. |
17.6 | Severability. The invalidity of any provision of this Lease, as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction, shall in no way affect the validity of any other provision hereof. |
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Lease as of the date hereinabove first written.
THE STATE OF UTAH, acting by and through the SCHOOL AND INSTITUTIONAL TRUST LANDS ADMINISTRATION (“LESSOR”) | ||||||||
APPROVED AS TO FORM: XXXX X. XXXXXXXXX | XXXXX X. XXXXXX, DIRECTOR | |||||||
ATTORNEY GENERAL | ||||||||
By: | /s/ Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxxx | |||||||
By: |
| XXXXXX X. XXXXXXX | ||||||
Form Approved: 4-30-07 | ASSISTANT DIRECTOR/MINERALS | |||||||
School & Institutional Trust Lands Administration-LESSOR | ||||||||
LESSEE: | ||||||||
By: | /s/ Xxxxx X. Xxxx | |||||||
Its: | CEO |
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STATE OF UTAH | ) | |
: | ||
COUNTY OF SALT LAKE | ) |
On the 18th day of June, 2007, personally appeared before me XXXXXX X. XXXXXXX who duly sworn did say that he is Assistant Director of the School & Institutional Trust Lands Administration of the State of Utah and the signer of the above instrument, who duly acknowledged that he executed the same.
Given under my hand and seal this 18th day of June, 2007.
/s/ Xxxxx X. Xxxxxxx |
NOTARY PUBLIC, residing at: |
My Commission Expires: 5/25/2010
STATE OF UTAH | ) | |
: | ||
COUNTY OF UTAH | ) |
On the 11 day of June, 2007, personally appeared before, Xxxxx Xxxx, signer of the above instrument, who duty acknowledged to me that he executed the same.
Given under my hand and seal this 11 day of June, 2007.
Xxxxxxx Xxxx |
NOTARY PUBLIC, residing at: Orem, Utah |
My Commission Expires:
STATE OF | ) |
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: | ||||
COUNTY OF | ) |
On the day of , 20 , personally appeared before me , who being duly sworn did say that he is an officer of and that said instrument was signed in behalf of said corporation by resolution of its Board of Directors, and said acknowledged to me that said corporation executed the same.
Given under my hand and seal this day of , 20 .
|
NOTARY PUBLIC, residing at: |
My Commission Expires: