Brian Zinchuk is editor and owner of Pipeline Online
On Dec. 16, the Ministry of Energy and Resources announced its Dec. 13 mineral rights sale came in at a record $3.2 million, which more than doubled the petroleum land sale a week earlier, on Dec. 7. That petroleum and natural gas rights sale came in at $1.4 million.
The Government of Saskatchewan’s final subsurface mineral public offering for the 2021-22 fiscal year has raised $3,205,870.20 in revenue for the province, the highest amount since the subsurface mineral public offering process began in 2018.
In total, the province has collected nearly $7.5 million from the three subsurface mineral public offerings this fiscal year. The record amount of money raised this fiscal year can be contributed to the increased interest and demand for lithium, according to the Ministry of Energy and Resources. “Given Saskatchewan’s geological potential and existing brine extraction expertise and infrastructure, the province is well-situated to become a leader in this industry,” it said in a release.
Seventy-seven subsurface permit blocks totaling 236,416 hectares were posted in the December 2021 public offering. Forty-six of these subsurface permit blocks, covering 184,959. hectares received acceptable bids.
The highest bid was $420,915.71 from NRG LandSolutions Inc. for an 8,095 hectare block 28 kilometres southwest of Torquay that is prospective for minerals in formation water such as lithium.
NRG LandSolutions picked up a total of 20 parcels, with six in the $117,000 to $420,000 range, and the rest much, much lower.
Hub City Lithium Corp. purchased 16 blocks, but only paid $3,000 to $11,766 for most of them, with the bulk being closer to $5,000. One parcel came in at $45,841 and another was $16,712. That parcel, Block 18, is located about 12 kilometres south-southwest of Montmartre.
Silver Hawk Resources Ltd. picked up a singular 3,751 hectare block east of Leader for $24,418.
The highest dollars per hectare bid was for a parcel six kilometres east of Bethune that is prospective for potash. The permit, acquired by Buffalo Potash Corp., was $61.50 per hectare for a total of $212,774. Buffalo Potash also picked up a second parcel, about halfway between Kendall and Indian Head, immediately to the west of a large block of Assiniboine First Nation reserve land.
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Gensource Potash spent $103,305 on 7,244 hectares near Tugaske, south of Eyebrow. Notably, the Gensource land is roughly 55 kilometres to the west of the K+S Bethune mine central processing facility, and Buffalo’s Bethune parcel is 20 kilometres to the east of that facility.
Subsurface minerals, as defined in the Subsurface Mineral Tenure Regulations, are natural mineral salts such as lithium and potassium, and their compounds, occurring more than 60 metres underground. Potash is a potassium compound that occurs as a solid in the subsurface but can be dissolved for solution mining purposes or through natural processes. Lithium is dissolved in formation water and is attracting attention due to its use in lithium ion batteries.
No posting requests have been received for the next scheduled subsurface mineral public offering on February 7, 2022, and therefore it has been cancelled. The next subsurface mineral public offering will be held on June 27, 2022.
Oil and gas sale
The Dec. 7 Crown petroleum and natural gas rights sale brought in $1.4 million.
Previous 2021 sales brought in $1.9 million in October, $3.1 million in August, $0.5 million in June, and $1.9 million in April.
There were 73 parcels posted, and 55 sold.
In the southeast, there were 59 parcels totalling 4,216 hectares posted, and 51 sold for a total of 3,793 hectares. That brought in $913,863, the highest for any area. The bonus bid averaged $241 per hectare.
The Lloydminster area had 12 parcels posted, but just two acquired. Those two made up 373 hectares, which sold for $295,568, or $791 per hectare on average. The highest dollars per hectare received on a parcel at $881 per hectare. This lease is located 10 kilometres southwest of Lashburn, adjacent to the Buzzard Lloydminster Oil Pool. Millennium land Ltd was awarded this lease.
The highest bonus bid received on a lease in this offering was $215,076 for a 244 hectare lease in the Lloydminster area. This lease is located southwest of Lashburn and is prospective for oil in the Mannville Group. Millennium land Ltd was awarded this lease.
In west central Saskatchewan, there were two parcels totalling 194 hectares posted. Both sold, for a total of $190,710, or an average of $981 per hectare. The highest bonus bid and dollars per hectare received on a parcel in this area was $133,836 or $1,033 per hectare. This 129.5 hectare lease was awarded to Teine Energy Ltd. and is located nine kilometres northeast of Marengo, adjacent to the Milton Viking Gas Pool.
There were no parcels in southwest Saskatchewan posted in this sale.
The highest dollars per hectare received on a lease in this offering is $3,152/hectare. This 32 hectare lease was awarded to Millennium Land Ltd. and is located southeast of Weyburn.
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