Mineral rights
in Texas.

Texas is the most productive oil and gas state in the country, and it is not close. Multiple world-class plays operate simultaneously across different parts of the state. The Permian Basin in West Texas is the current star, accounting for the majority of state oil production. The Eagle Ford in South Texas produces both oil and gas. The Haynesville in East Texas is a major dry-gas play. The Barnett near Fort Worth pioneered modern shale development.

Each of these plays has its own geology, its own operator roster, and its own typical mineral ownership patterns. A family that inherited Texas minerals might be in any one of these, or sometimes more than one.

Texas mineral law is also unusual. The state is strongly private-property-oriented, and mineral ownership is often separated from surface ownership through layers of historical transactions. Understanding what you actually own in Texas sometimes requires tracing back a century of deed records.

Texas has more significant oil and gas basins than any other state. The four below account for the bulk of modern activity, though meaningful production exists in others.

Texas has over 250 counties, and oil and gas activity exists across many of them. The list below highlights the most active counties in each of the state's major plays.

Texas has more operators than any other state. The list below reflects major Permian, Eagle Ford, and Haynesville names, though hundreds of smaller operators also produce oil and gas across the state.

Texas has a fundamentally different oil and gas regulatory philosophy than most Western states. The legal tradition strongly protects private mineral rights, forced pooling is heavily restricted, and the state regulator has a long-standing pro-development posture. For mineral owners, this creates both advantages and complications that are specific to Texas.