Simple English definitions for legal terms
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A further-exploration covenant is a promise made in an oil-and-gas lease that the person leasing the property will continue to search for more oil and gas after they have already found some. This promise is usually implied, meaning it is not specifically written in the lease. Some places say that this promise only exists if the lease also includes a promise to develop the property reasonably.
A further-exploration covenant is a promise made in an oil-and-gas lease that the lessee will continue to explore other parts of the leased property and other formations under it, once production has been obtained.
For example, if a company leases a piece of land for oil and gas exploration and they strike oil, the further-exploration covenant requires them to continue exploring the rest of the property for potential oil and gas reserves.
It's important to note that some jurisdictions consider the further-exploration covenant to be dependent on the covenant for reasonable development. This means that the lessee must not only explore the property further, but also do so in a reasonable and prudent manner.