Transactions With Related Parties

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2013

Related Party Transactions [Abstract]

Transactions With Related Parties

Unit Petroleum Company serves as the general partner of 16 oil and gas limited partnerships. Three were formed for investment by third parties and 13 (the employee partnerships) were formed to allow certain of our qualified employees and our directors to participate in Unit Petroleum’s oil and gas exploration and production operations. The partnerships for the third party investments were formed in 1984 and 1986. Employee partnerships have been formed for each year beginning with 1984 and ending with 2011. Interests in the employee partnerships were offered to the employees of Unit and its subsidiaries whose annual base compensation was at least a specified amount ($36,000 for 2011) and to the directors of Unit.

The employee partnerships formed in 1984 through 1990 were consolidated into a single consolidating partnership in 1993 and the employee partnerships formed in 1991 through 1999 were also consolidated into the consolidating partnership in 2002. The consolidation of the 1991 through the 1999 employee partnerships was done by the general partners under the authority contained in the respective partnership agreements and did not involve any vote, consent or approval by the limited partners. The employee partnerships have each had a set percentage (ranging from 1% to 15%) of our interest in most of the oil and natural gas wells we drill or acquire for our own account during the particular year for which the partnership was formed. The total interest the employees have in our oil and natural gas wells by participating in these partnerships does not exceed one percent.

Amounts received in the years ended December 31, from both public and private Partnerships for which Unit is a general partner are as follows:

	2013		2012		2011
	(In thousands)
Contract drilling	$	16	$	246	$	352
Well supervision and other fees	$	470	$	434	$	396
General and administrative expense reimbursement	$	36	$	39	$	610

Related party transactions for contract drilling and well supervision fees are the related party’s share of such costs. These costs are billed to related parties on the same basis as billings to unrelated parties for such services. General and administrative reimbursements are both direct general and administrative expense incurred on the related party’s behalf and indirect expenses allocated to the related parties. Such allocations are based on the related party’s level of activity and are considered by management to be reasonable.

One of our directors, G. Bailey Peyton IV, also serves as the President and a significant investor in Upland Resources, L.L.C., a small independent oil and natural gas exploration company, and as Manager of Peyton Royalties, LP, a family-controlled limited partnership that owns royalty rights in wells in the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles. In the ordinary course of business, there were no wells drilled for Upland Resources, L.L.C. during 2013 or 2011 and the Company drilled three wells during 2012, under its usual standard dayrate contracts, in which Upland Resources, L.L.C. was a participant, for which the Company received payments of approximately $1.6 million from Upland Resources, L.L.C. The Company also paid royalties during 2013 and 2012, primarily due to its status as successor in interest to prior transactions and as operator of the wells involved and, in some cases, as lessee, with respect to certain wells in which Mr. Peyton, members of Mr. Peyton's family, and Peyton Royalties, LP have an interest. Such payments totaled approximately $1.4 million, $1.2 million, and $0.7 million during 2013, 2012, and 2011, respectively. Our Audit Committee and the board, in accordance with the Policy, have determined that these arrangements are in the best interest of the Company.