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Thumb of Michigan | Not real sure why this stuff still happens in the internet age, but it does. Too bad as well. Doesn't have to happen this way.
1. Never sign "their" lease. They sign yours. You and your neighbors hire an attorney who's very well versed in wind. Or if you can't locate one, an oil and gas attorney might work. Same crooks are trying to lease either resource, so the difference isn't that great. Shop the total acreage around. It will pay dividends. Some may not want a turbine or have the right circumstances to get one. Maybe they only get the wire or a road. Thats easier to stomach if everyone in the group is sharing in the income.
2. You mark the spot the roads are on and you mark the spots where the turbines go. You may have to budge some, but be willing to walk if you're asked to budge beyond your comfort level. Might be zoning that makes the budge happen, might be something else. I'm bull headed and walked over 90 feet. It was a big deal to me, and thats all that matters.
3. Tile, compaction, and that sort of thing are completely foreign concepts to the head office. You'll never educate them on it, so simply make sure your lease is specific about whats acceptable, which contractor you specify is going to do the repair, and which bank account the money they need to pre pay goes to. And make a worse case scenario, don't cut yourself short. Give them copies of bills as the repairs occur, thats fair. Return any unused money when you're happy.
4. You should be able to negotiate a two part rental agreement. Part A is a simple rent deal. They are going to have to pay X to have it on your land for XX years. Thats the big $ part of the agreement. The rest is based on production. And it could be something along the lines that the total rent expected is XXX, but there is a minimum payment of XXX no matter whether the turbine spins or not. Reason you want that is that sometimes they will talk someone into a total % of the production rent. The problem is that in times of less demand, your turbine may not be spinning. Not your problem, nothing you can control. A total production % contract isn't real valuable to the land owner if the blades are parked.
Heres the bad thing: more than likely too late for you to do most of this if the neighbors are leased. Your (and your neighbors) leverage has been lessened.
The payment being offered to you seems very light to me.
Edit: as far as removal goes, that could be a huge deal. Maybe not for you, but could be for the next generation. You should be able to specify you need a performance bond, and that removal will begin in a given period after the lease is up or the blades quit turning. None of the companies like that. And thats OK. Don't sign without some sort of guarantee. Our township zoning has that requirement to get a permit already, so it might be the same for you. Or not.
Edited by pat-michigan 8/5/2016 17:44
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questions for guys with wind turbine leases
