OIL AND NATURAL GAS PROPERTIES

12 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Oil and Natural Gas Properties [Abstract]

OIL AND NATURAL GAS PROPERTIES

OIL AND NATURAL GAS PROPERTIES

Dispositions

In October 2019, Barnwell entered into a purchase and sale agreement with an independent third party and sold its interests in properties located in the Progress area of Alberta, Canada. The sales price per the agreement was adjusted for customary purchase price adjustments to $594,000 in order to, among other things, reflect an economic effective date of October 1, 2019. The proceeds were credited to the full cost pool, with no gain or loss recognized, as the sale did not result in a significant alteration of the relationship between capitalized costs and proved reserves.

There were no oil and natural gas property dispositions during the year ended September 30, 2019. The $1,519,000 of proceeds from sale of oil and natural gas properties included in the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows for the year ended September 30, 2019 primarily represents the refund of income taxes previously withheld from what otherwise would have been proceeds on prior years' oil and natural gas property sales.

Acquisitions

    There were no significant amounts paid for oil and natural gas property acquisitions during the year ended September 30, 2020.

    In the quarter ended December 31, 2018, Barnwell acquired additional working interests in oil and natural gas properties located in the Wood River and Twining areas of Alberta, Canada for cash consideration of $355,000. The purchase prices per the agreements were adjusted for customary purchase price adjustments to reflect the economic activity from the effective date to the closing date. The customary adjustments to the purchase prices were finalized in the quarter ended June 30, 2019 and resulted in an immaterial adjustment. There were no other oil and natural gas working interest acquisitions during the year ended September 30, 2019.

Impairment of Oil and Natural Gas Properties

    Under the full cost method of accounting, the Company performs quarterly oil and natural gas ceiling test calculations. There was a ceiling test impairment of $4,326,000 during the year ended September 30, 2020. There was a $5,710,000 ceiling test impairment during the year ended September 30, 2019.

    Changes in the mandated 12-month historical rolling average first-day-of-the-month prices for oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids prices, the value of reserve additions as compared to the amount of capital expenditures to obtain them, and changes in production rates and estimated levels of reserves, future development costs and the estimated market value of unproved properties, impact the determination of the maximum carrying value of oil and natural gas properties. Prior to the quarter ended March 31, 2020, the ceiling test calculation included management’s estimation that the Company had the ability to fund all of the future capital expenditures necessary over the next five years to develop proved undeveloped reserves in the Twining area of Alberta, Canada. However, due to the impact on oil prices and the extreme uncertainties created by the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company's financial outlook, management is no longer reasonably certain that the Company will have the financial resources necessary to make any of the capital expenditures necessary to develop the proved undeveloped reserves. Therefore, the proved undeveloped reserves were excluded from the quarterly ceiling test calculations subsequent to December 31, 2019.

    As discussed above, the ceiling test mandates the use of the 12-month historical rolling average first-day-of-the-month prices. If oil prices remain at current levels or decline further, it is more likely than not that the Company will incur further impairment write-downs in future periods in the absence of any offsetting factors that are not currently known or projected.