Black Stone Minerals Company, L.P., a privately-owned Delaware limited partnership located in Houston, Texas, is one of the largest private fee mineral and royalty owners in the United States. Black Stone owns or controls interests, either directly or through institutionally-supported partnerships, in more than 40,000 wells and approximately 15.0 million gross fee mineral acres across 41 states in every major producing basin. In addition, Black Stone owns other royalty interests in approximately 2.7 million acres. The company and its partners’ primary operations include leasing minerals to exploration and production companies and acquiring additional properties for future leasing and development.
Since 1999, Black Stone has conducted the steady and methodical aggregation of fee minerals, royalties, overriding royalty interests (“ORRIs”) and non-operated working interests. During that time, the company has completed 29 acquisitions totaling over $1.3 billion with interests in 14.1 million gross acres. Now, as one of the largest private mineral owners and with control of large blocks of contiguous acreage throughout the country, Black Stone provides exploration companies with an extensive acreage inventory from which to generate prospects and thus a “one-stop shop” to search for new opportunities. In addition, Black Stone’s in-house geological and geophysical team uses the company’s extensive seismic library to assist E&P companies in the identification of emerging plays and potential drilling locations. Our land department quickly negotiates leases on fair terms to get the minerals “in play.” Because Black Stone is not an operator, it does not compete for reserves with its lessees like traditional E&P companies do.
Black Stone’s partnerships give investors the opportunity to invest in alternative assets and benefit from the years of experience that the company’s management team and employees have in the industry. As both the general partner and the largest limited partner in each of its funds, Black Stone has a significant stake in the success of its investors. Since its acquisition program commenced in 1999, Black Stone has generated superior returns by actively managing and effectively leasing minerals and by making accretive acquisitions.