American Oil and Gas Reporter - July 2016 - 85

ConventionSection: Independent Petroleum Association of New Mexico

Increasing Oil Market Prices
Give IPANM Some Hope
By Dan Holder
ROSWELL, N.M.-The uptick in commodity prices has generated a small degree
of optimism in the oil and gas community,
and Mitch Krakauskas, president of the
Independent Petroleum Association of New
Mexico, says its members see some reasons
for hope in the Land of Enchantment.
"IPANM members are more optimistic
than they were a couple months ago," assesses Krakauskas, land manager for
Strata Production Company in Roswell.
"We have a way to go on prices. I have
not been around as long as some other
IPANM members, but I have heard that
this is one of the worst downturns they
have ever been through, and they have
been through 40 years of them. I hope
we will not have another downturn like
this in my lifetime."
Assessing the state of the industry in
advance of IPANM's annual convention,
scheduled for Aug. 1-3 at the Hilton
Santa Fe Historic Plaza in Santa Fe,
N.M., Krakauskas says oil needs to stay
above $50 a barrel to see the industry regain its strength.
"We have hit that mark, but it is still
hard to see activity levels increasing. It will
take a higher price than that to get more
people back to work," he says. "Companies
have reacted to the price drop by laying off
employees, but it is hard for any company
to let people go. It affects so many people,
and nobody likes laying off workers. A lot
of New Mexico companies are keeping
people on as long as they can."
IPANM Executive Director Karin Foster observes that government initiatives
have not been quiet despite the poor
market conditions. When prices recover
and drilling activity resumes, she says
issues such as the Bureau of Land Management's resource management plan survey requirements and its revisions to its
onshore orders will demand companies'
attention before they ramp up field work.
Programmatic Agreements
The revised Permian Basin programmatic agreement is an extension of the
BLM's earlier PA, Krakauskas says. Under

IPANM Annual Meeting - Albuquerque, N.M.
Monday, Aug. 1
2-4 p.m. IPANM Board of Directors Meeting,
Chapel Room, Hilton Santa Fe Historic
Plaza
Directors Only
4-6 p.m. Welcome Reception, Ortiz Room

Tuesday, Aug. 2
7-8 a.m. Breakfast Buffet, Outside Mesa
Ballroom, Hilton Santa Fe Historic Plaza
8-10:30 a.m. Tuesday General Session,
Mesa Ballroom
Opening Remarks, Mitch Krakauskas,
IPANM President
National Energy Education Development
(NEED) Project Update, Mary Spruill,
NEED Executive Director
Oil and Gas Economic Impact, Tom Clifford
Former New Mexico Finance and Administration Secretary
Keynote Address: Robert Bryce, "Hydrocarbons, Innovation and Why We are at
the Beginning of Another American Century"
11 a.m. Golf Tournament
Board Buses to Towa Golf Course at
Buffalo Thunder Resort

the revisions, the agreement covering
New Mexico's Eddy and Lea counties
will be extended for another 10 years.
The proposal also expands the PA by 16
quadrangle areas in 11 townships from
the current 28 quadrangle areas and
changes the fee structure.
"This is just an extension of the previous PA," Krakauskas points out. "The
agency is expanding the area where you
pay a fee to avoid doing another archaeological survey. You avoid known archaeological sites, and if you do uncover
a new site while you are working, then
you report it to BLM. You save time not
having to do the surveys over and over.
There are so many archaeological sites
in Southeast New Mexico, and there is
only so much time and money for BLM
to go out and study the sites. It is a good
plan, and a great agreement."
According to BLM, the PA is administered by its field office in Carlsbad,

Shotgun Start
Buses Return to Hilton by 5:30 p.m.
6:30-8:30 p.m. President's Reception, Poolside

Wednesday, Aug. 3
7-8 a.m. Breakfast Buffet, Outside Mesa
Ballroom
8 a.m.-Noon General Session, Mesa Ballroom
Opening Remarks, Mitch Krakauskas
Update, Amy Lueders, Bureau of Land
Management State Director (Invited)
New Plans at PRRC, Robert Balch, PRRC
Director
Update, David Catanach, Director, Oil
Conservation Division
State Land Office Developments, Aubrey
Dunn, New Mexico Land Commissioner
A Look at IPANM's New Website, Kristelle
Siarza, Chief Executive Officer of Siarza
Social Digital
Break
IPANM Government Report, Karin Foster,
IPANM Executive Director
Awards Presentation

N.M. It allows operators to pay into a
mitigation fund in lieu of financing additional archeological surveys within that
area. The bureau provides operators with
GIS information on the location of all
National Register-eligible archeological
sites that must be avoided. Companies
are required to plan projects at least 100
feet away from known sites. The fees are
used to conduct archeological research
and outreach projects across Southwest
New Mexico.
"BLM was really good to work with
on changing the Permian Basin PA,"
Foster applauds. "It allowed industry to
change some of the fees, and relied on
industry information to include in the archaeological inventory. It is a real good
tool for industry to use, and it would be
nice to see it expanded."
Foster adds her next hope involves
BLM developing a PA for the Chaco
Canyon region, covering the San Juan
JULY 2016 85

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