e424b5
Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(5)
Registration No. 333-124056
PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT
(To Prospectus dated April 22, 2005)
8,600,000 Trust Units
Permian Basin Royalty Trust
Burlington Resources Inc. is offering to sell 8,600,000 trust
units representing undivided shares of beneficial interest in
Permian Basin Royalty Trust. The trust units do not represent
any interest in Burlington Resources. The trust will not receive
any of the proceeds of this offering.
The trust units are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under
the symbol PBT. On December 15, 2005, the
last reported sale price for the trust units was $15.75 per
unit.
Investing in the trust units involves risks. See
Risk Factors beginning on
page S-6 of this
prospectus supplement and on page 5 of the accompanying
prospectus.
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state
securities commission has approved or disapproved of these
securities or determined if this prospectus supplement or the
accompanying prospectus is truthful or complete. Any
representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
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Per Trust Unit |
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Total |
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Initial price to public
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$ |
15.75000 |
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$ |
135,450,000 |
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Underwriting discount
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$ |
.70875 |
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$ |
6,095,250 |
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Proceeds to Burlington Resources (before expenses)
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$ |
15.04125 |
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$ |
129,354,750 |
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Burlington Resources has granted the underwriters a
30-day option to
purchase up to 1,290,000 additional trust units on the same
terms and conditions as set forth above if the underwriters sell
more than 8,600,000 trust units in this offering.
The underwriters will deliver the trust units on or about
December 21, 2005.
Joint Book-Running Managers
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Lehman Brothers |
Wachovia Securities |
Citigroup
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Credit Suisse First
Boston |
December 15, 2005
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Prospectus Supplement |
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S-1 |
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S-6 |
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S-10 |
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S-11 |
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S-13 |
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S-13 |
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S-14 |
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S-17 |
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S-17 |
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S-18 |
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S-19 |
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Prospectus |
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This document is in two parts. The first part is this prospectus
supplement, which describes the specific terms of this offering.
The second part is the accompanying prospectus, which gives more
general information, some of which may not apply to this
offering. If the description of the offering varies between the
prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, you
should rely on the information in this prospectus supplement.
You should rely only on the information contained or
incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement and the
accompanying prospectus. Neither the trust nor Burlington
Resources has authorized anyone else to provide you with
additional or different information. If anyone provides you with
additional, different or inconsistent information, you should
not rely on it. Neither the trust nor Burlington Resources is
making an offer to sell the trust units in any jurisdictions
where offers and sales are not permitted. You should not assume
that the information included in this prospectus supplement or
the accompanying prospectus is accurate as of any date other
than the dates shown in these documents or that any information
incorporated by reference is accurate as of any date other than
the date of the document incorporated by reference. The
business, financial condition, results of operations and
prospects of the trust, Burlington Resources or both may have
changed since that date.
i
SUMMARY
The summary highlights information contained elsewhere in
this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus. It
does not contain all of the information that you should consider
before making an investment decision. You should read carefully
the entire prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus,
the documents incorporated by reference and the other documents
referred to herein. Please read Risk Factors
beginning on page S-6 of this prospectus supplement for
more information about important risks that you should consider
before investing in the trust units.
In this prospectus supplement, references to the
trust mean Permian Basin Royalty Trust, references
to Burlington Resources mean Burlington Resources
Inc. and references to Southland Royalty mean
Southland Royalty Company. References to BROG mean
Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company LP, a wholly
owned subsidiary of Burlington Resources. References to the
trustee mean Bank of America, N.A., as trustee for
the trust, or any successor trustee.
The Trust
The trust was created under the laws of the state of Texas on
November 3, 1980 by Southland Royalty Company pursuant to
that companys conveyance of net overriding royalty
interests (equivalent to net profits interests) to the trust for
the benefit of Southland Royaltys stockholders. Each
stockholder of Southland Royalty on the date of the trusts
formation received one unit of beneficial ownership in the trust
for each share of Southland Royalty common stock then held. In
1996, BROG succeeded to the interests of Southland Royalty.
The trusts net overriding royalty interests constitute its
principal assets. These net overriding royalty interests include
a 75% net overriding royalty carved out of Southland
Royaltys fee mineral interests in the Waddell Ranch in
Crane County, Texas, and a 95% net overriding royalty carved out
of Southland Royaltys major producing royalty interests in
other mature producing oil and gas fields throughout 33 counties
in Texas, which are referred to in this prospectus supplement as
the Texas Royalty properties. The trust has no power or
authority to carry on any business activity and has no
employees. All administrative functions are performed by the
trustee.
BROG continues to own the fee mineral interests in the Waddell
Ranch properties underlying the trusts net overriding
royalty and is the operator of record on those properties. In
1997, BROG sold its interests in the Texas Royalty properties to
Riverhill Energy Corporation, an energy company not affiliated
with Burlington Resources or its subsidiaries. Riverhill Energy
Corporation succeeded to all of the obligations of BROG arising
under the conveyance.
The following are additional significant characteristics of the
trust:
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Established underlying oil and gas properties. The
oil and gas properties underlying the trusts net
overriding royalty interests are distinguished by geologic
diversity and relatively stable total estimated reserves.
Additionally, revisions to estimated production from these
properties over the previous five years reflect mitigated
declines in aggregate annual production. |
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Efficient historical operations of a legacy asset.
The Waddell Ranch properties comprised approximately 75% of the
reserve base underlying the trusts royalty interests at
December 31, 2004. These properties have historically been
operated by Burlington Resources or its designee in a cost
effective manner and with a disciplined approach to
reinvestment. These properties are located within a field that
has delivered gross cumulative production in excess of
500 MMBoe over the past seven decades. |
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Direct exposure to oil and gas commodity prices.
The distributions of the trust are directly affected by the
prices realized for the production from the underlying
properties, and have benefited recently from increased oil and
gas prices. |
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Unique class of income-oriented security. Royalty
trusts are unique among oil and gas investment vehicles because
of the significant proportion of income distributed to their
investors. These distributions are further distinguished by the
pass-through of tax depletion allowances, which allow owners of
royalty trust securities to defer a portion of income taxes on
distributions received. In recent years, the oil and gas royalty
trusts have generally delivered a higher current yield relative
to the other groups of U.S. energy income-oriented
securities. |
S-1
Overview of the Underlying Properties
The properties underlying the trusts overriding royalty
interests consist principally of oil and gas producing
properties in the Waddell Ranch and the Texas Royalty properties.
Waddell Ranch Properties. The Waddell Ranch properties
are located in Crane County, Texas in the heart of the Permian
Basin. Waddell Ranch includes more than 776 gross
(345 net) productive oil wells and 197 gross
(93 net) productive gas wells across 76,922 gross
(33,246 net) acres. The Waddell Ranch properties are part
of an oil field that has been producing oil and gas for more
than 75 years. Independent reserve estimates, which take
into account forecasted production declines, indicate a
remaining ultimate economic life of the Waddell Ranch properties
in excess of 40 years.
The long production history of the Waddell Ranch, combined with
the operators and working interest owners extensive
experience, has created a depth of knowledge on which to base
operating decisions. Specifically, these factors have enabled
the operator to deploy development capital more effectively and
efficiently to low-risk development methods, such as water
flooding. All of the major fields in Waddell Ranch have
undergone water flooding which has been a significant factor in
the operators ability to mitigate the decline of the
Waddell Ranch properties.
Texas Royalty Properties. The Texas Royalty properties
consist of a 95% net overriding royalty interest in royalties
owned by Riverhill Energy Corporation. The properties underlying
the Texas Royalty properties are located throughout 33 counties
across the Permian Basin, East Texas, South Texas and the Texas
Panhandle, and consist of approximately 125 separate royalty
interests containing approximately 303,000 gross
(51,000 net) producing acres. The two largest properties
are part of the Wasson and Yates fields, and represent
approximately 41% of the future net revenues of the Texas
Royalty properties.
Wasson field is an oil and gas producing area in southwestern
Yoakum and northwestern Gaines counties of West Texas, five
miles east of the Texas New Mexico border. The
field, which covers 62,500 acres and is the largest field
in Texas based on estimated oil reserves, has been producing oil
and gas since 1937 and in 2004 produced approximately
126 MBoe per day.
Yates field, located in southeastern Pecos County, Texas, was
discovered in 1926, and has produced over 1 billion barrels
of oil throughout its life, making it one of the most prolific
oil fields in the world. The field continues to maintain
production in excess of 36.2 MBoe per day, and has been
responsive to production extension methods deployed to date such
as CO2 injection and water flooding.
S-2
Ownership and Organizational Structure
The following chart depicts our organizational structure and
ownership before and after this offering (without giving effect
to any exercise of the underwriters 30-day option to
purchase additional units).
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(1) |
Represents BROGs fee mineral interest only in those
properties within the Waddell Ranch burdened by the trusts
net overriding royalty. |
The trust maintains its principal executive offices at 901 Main
Street, Dallas, Texas 75202, telephone (214) 209-2400.
Burlington Resources maintains its principal executive offices
at 717 Texas, Suite 2100, Houston, Texas 77002, telephone
(713) 624-9000.
S-3
Summary Reserve and Production Information
The following table summarizes historical net proved reserves
estimated for fiscal years ended December 31, 2002, 2003
and 2004 and corresponding annual production information for the
net overriding royalty interests and underlying properties from
the reserve report, dated February 25, 2005, prepared for
the trust by Cawley, Gillespie & Associates, Inc.,
independent petroleum engineers. Additional information
regarding the net proved reserves of the trust is provided in
the trusts annual report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2004, as amended by Amendment 1 thereto
on Form 10-K/ A filed April 6, 2005 and Amendment 2
thereto on Form 10-K/ A filed July 25, 2005, and the
notes to the financial statements in the trusts annual
report to security holders which is filed as an exhibit to the
trusts annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2004.
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Underlying Properties |
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Waddell Ranch Properties |
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Texas Royalty Properties |
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Total |
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2002 |
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2003 |
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2004 |
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2002 |
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2003 |
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2004 |
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2002 |
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2003 |
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2004 |
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Production
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Oil (MBbls)
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923 |
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858 |
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873 |
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350 |
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343 |
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349 |
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1,273 |
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1,201 |
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1,223 |
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Gas (MMcf)
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5,310 |
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5,510 |
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5,291 |
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879 |
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734 |
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685 |
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6,189 |
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6,244 |
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5,976 |
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Oil Equivalents (MBoe)(1)
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1,808 |
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1,777 |
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1,755 |
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497 |
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465 |
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463 |
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2,304 |
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2,242 |
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2,219 |
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Royalties |
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Waddell Ranch Properties |
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Texas Royalty Properties |
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Total |
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2002 |
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2003 |
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2004 |
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2002 |
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2003 |
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2004 |
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2002 |
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2003 |
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2004 |
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Production(2)
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Oil (MBbls)
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427 |
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395 |
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471 |
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302 |
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304 |
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308 |
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729 |
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699 |
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779 |
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Gas (MMcf)
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2,441 |
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2,511 |
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2,643 |
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751 |
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650 |
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602 |
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3,192 |
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3,161 |
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3,245 |
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Oil Equivalents (MBoe)(1)
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834 |
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814 |
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912 |
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427 |
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412 |
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408 |
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1,261 |
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1,226 |
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1,320 |
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Reserves(2)(3)
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Oil (MBbls)
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4,047 |
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3,531 |
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3,606 |
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3,439 |
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3,376 |
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3,502 |
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7,486 |
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6,907 |
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7,108 |
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Gas (MMcf)
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22,940 |
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21,822 |
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21,871 |
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5,565 |
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5,425 |
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5,914 |
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28,505 |
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27,247 |
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27,785 |
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Oil Equivalents (MBoe)(1)
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7,870 |
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7,168 |
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7,251 |
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4,367 |
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4,280 |
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4,488 |
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12,237 |
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11,448 |
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11,739 |
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(1) |
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Amounts expressed in MBoe are based on conversion ratios of
6 Mcf: 1 Boe and 1 Bbl: 1 Boe. |
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Since the oil and gas sales attributable to the trusts
royalty interests are based on an allocation formula that is
dependent on such factors as price and cost (including capital
expenditures), production amounts do not necessarily provide a
meaningful comparison. |
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(3) |
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Reserve quantities shown in the preceding table were estimated
from projections of reserves attributable to the combined BROG,
Riverhill Energy and trust interests in the properties
underlying the trusts royalty interests. Reserve
quantities attributable to the trusts royalty interests
were estimated by allocating to the trusts royalty
interests a portion of the total estimated net reserve
quantities of the interests, based upon gross revenue less
production taxes. Because the reserve quantities attributable to
the trusts royalty interests are estimated using an
allocation of the reserves, any changes in prices or costs will
result in changes in the estimated reserve quantities allocated
to the trusts royalty interests. Therefore, the reserve
quantities estimated will vary if different future price and
cost assumptions occur. Oil and gas prices of $37.90 and
$39.07 per barrel and $6.22 and $6.61 per Mcf,
respectively, were used to determine the estimated reserve
quantities for the Waddell Ranch properties and the Texas
Royalty properties, respectively, at December 31, 2004. Oil
and gas prices of $30.70 and $29.91 per barrel and $4.76
and $4.71 per Mcf, respectively, were used to determine the
estimated reserve quantities for the Waddell Ranch properties
and the Texas Royalty properties, respectively, at
December 31, 2003. Oil and gas prices of $31.88 and
$28.95 per barrel and $3.80 and $3.79 per Mcf,
respectively, were used to determine the estimated reserve
quantities for the Waddell Ranch properties and the Texas
Royalty properties, respectively, at December 31, 2002. |
There are many uncertainties inherent in estimating quantities
and values of proved reserves and in projecting future rates of
production and the timing of development expenditures. The
reserve data set forth above, although prepared by independent
petroleum engineers in a manner customary in the industry, are
estimates only, and actual quantities and values of crude oil
and natural gas are likely to differ from the estimated amounts
set forth. In addition, the reserve estimates for the net
overriding royalty interests will be affected by future changes
in sales prices for crude oil and natural gas produced and costs
that are deducted in calculating net proceeds from net
overriding royalty interests.
S-4
The Offering
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Trust units offered by Burlington Resources |
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8,600,000 trust units; 9,890,000 trust units if the
underwriters exercise their purchase option in full. |
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Trust units to be outstanding after this offering |
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46,608,796 trust units |
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Use of proceeds |
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The trust will not receive any proceeds from the sale of the
8,600,000 trust units by Burlington Resources. Burlington
Resources intends to use the proceeds from this offering, which
Burlington Resources estimates will be approximately
$129.1 million, or approximately $148.5 million if the
underwriters exercise their purchase option in full, to acquire
certain oil and gas properties through a qualified intermediary
in order to facilitate a possible like-kind exchange
under Section 1031 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code and
will use remaining proceeds, if any, for acquisitions or for
general corporate purposes. |
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Cash distributions |
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Holders of trust units are entitled to receive monthly cash
distributions. The aggregate monthly distribution amount paid to
unit holders is the excess of (i) net revenues from the
trust properties, plus any decrease in cash reserves previously
established for contingent liabilities and any other cash
receipts of the trust, over (ii) the expenses and payments
of liabilities of the trust, plus any net increase in cash
reserves for contingent liabilities. |
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The trust declared a November per-unit distribution of $.149470
on November 18, 2005, payable on December 14, 2005 to
unit holders of record on November 30, 2005. |
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For a more detailed description of the trusts cash
distribution policy, please read Recent Sales Prices and
Distributions on page S-13 of this prospectus supplement,
and Description of Trust Units beginning on
page 10 of the accompanying prospectus. |
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Risk factors |
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An investment in the trust units involves risks. Please read
Risk Factors beginning on page S-6 of this
prospectus supplement and page 5 of the accompanying
prospectus. |
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New York Stock Exchange symbol |
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PBT |
S-5
RISK FACTORS
An investment in the trust units offered hereby involves
risks. You should consider carefully the discussion of the risks
below and beginning on page 5 of the accompanying
prospectus. In addition, please read carefully the other
information in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying
prospectus, before purchasing any trust units.
The market price for the trust units may not reflect the
value of the royalty interests held by the trust.
The public trading price for the trust units tends to be tied to
the recent and expected levels of cash distribution on the trust
units. The amounts available for distribution by the trust vary
in response to numerous factors outside the control of the
trust, including prevailing prices for crude oil and natural gas
produced from the trusts royalty interests. The market
price is not necessarily indicative of the value that the trust
would realize if it sold those royalty interests to a third
party buyer. In addition, such market price is not necessarily
reflective of the fact that since the assets of the trust are
depleting assets, a portion of each cash distribution paid on
the trust units should be considered by investors as a return of
capital, with the remainder being considered as a return on
investment. There is no guarantee that distributions made to a
unit holder over the life of these depleting assets will equal
or exceed the purchase price paid by the unit holder. For
example, estimated undiscounted future net revenues from proved
reserves at December 31, 2004 were $424,965,000, or
$9.12 per unit, which is less than the last reported sales
price of the trust units on December 15, 2005 of
$15.75 per unit.
Crude oil and natural gas prices are volatile and fluctuate
in response to a number of factors. Lower prices could reduce
the net proceeds payable to the trust and trust
distributions.
The trusts monthly distributions are highly dependent upon
the prices realized from the sale of crude oil and natural gas
and a material decrease in such prices could reduce the amount
of cash distributions paid to unit holders. Crude oil and
natural gas prices can fluctuate widely on a month-to-month
basis in response to a variety of factors that are beyond the
control of the trust and Burlington Resources. Factors that
contribute to price fluctuation include, among others:
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political conditions in major oil producing regions, especially
the Middle East; |
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worldwide economic conditions; |
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weather conditions; |
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the supply and price of domestic and foreign crude oil or
natural gas; |
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the level of consumer demand; |
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the price and availability of alternative fuels; |
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the proximity to, and capacity of, transportation facilities; |
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the effect of worldwide energy conservation measures; and |
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the nature and extent of governmental regulation and taxation. |
When crude oil and natural gas prices decline, the trust is
affected in two ways. First, net royalties are reduced. Second,
exploration and development activity on the underlying
properties may decline as some projects may become uneconomic
and are either delayed or eliminated. It is impossible to
predict future crude oil and natural gas price movements, and
this reduces the predictability of future cash distributions to
trust unit holders.
Increased production and development costs attributable to
the net overriding royalty interests will result in decreased
trust distributions unless revenues also increase.
Production and development costs attributable to the Waddell
Ranch net overriding royalty are deducted in the calculation of
the trusts share of net proceeds. Accordingly, higher or
lower production
S-6
and development costs will directly decrease or increase the
amounts received by the trust for those net overriding royalty
interests. Production and development costs are impacted by
increases in commodity prices both directly, through
commodity-price dependent costs such as electricity, and
indirectly, as a result of demand-driven increases in costs of
oilfield goods and services. For example, Burlington Resources
currently estimates that the costs of goods and services that
will be included in production and development costs deducted in
calculating the trusts share of 2006 net proceeds will
increase approximately 39% over goods and services costs
incurred during 2005, principally as a result of increased
demand for such goods and services in response to increased oil
and gas prices. These increased costs will reduce the
trusts share of 2006 net proceeds unless revenues
increase as well.
If production and development costs attributable to the Waddell
Ranch net overriding royalty interests exceed the gross proceeds
related to production from the underlying properties, the trust
will not receive net proceeds until future proceeds from
production exceed the total of the excess costs plus accrued
interest during the deficit period. Development activities may
not generate sufficient additional proceeds to repay the costs.
Trust reserve estimates depend on many assumptions that may
prove to be inaccurate, which could cause both estimated
reserves and estimated future net revenues to be too high,
leading to write-downs of estimated reserves.
The value of the trust units will depend upon, among other
things, the reserves attributable to the trusts net
overriding royalty interests in the underlying properties. The
calculations of proved reserves included in this prospectus are
only estimates, and estimating reserves is inherently uncertain.
In addition, the estimates of future net revenues are based upon
various assumptions regarding future production levels, prices
and costs that may prove to be incorrect over time.
The accuracy of any reserve estimate is a function of the
quality of available data, engineering interpretation and
judgment, and the assumptions used regarding the quantities of
recoverable crude oil and natural gas and the future prices of
crude oil and natural gas. Petroleum engineers consider many
factors and make many assumptions in estimating reserves. Those
factors and assumptions include:
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historical production from the area compared with production
rates from similar producing areas; |
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the effects of governmental regulation; |
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assumptions about future commodity prices, production and
development costs, taxes, and capital expenditures; |
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the availability of enhanced recovery techniques; and |
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relationships with landowners, working interest partners,
pipeline companies and others. |
Changes in any of these factors and assumptions can materially
change reserve and future net revenue estimates. The
trusts estimate of reserves and future net revenues is
further complicated because the trust holds an interest in net
overriding royalties and does not own a specific percentage of
the crude oil or natural gas reserves. Ultimately, actual
production, revenues and expenditures for the underlying
properties, and therefore actual net proceeds payable to the
trust, will vary from estimates and those variations could be
material. Results of drilling, testing and production after the
date of those estimates may require substantial downward
revisions or write-downs of reserves.
Burlington Resources sale of its remaining trust units
may reduce the market value of trust units.
Burlington Resources currently owns 41.3% of outstanding trust
units and will sell approximately 18.5% of outstanding trust
units in this offering. Burlington Resources, over time, may
sell some or all of its remaining position in the trust units.
If Burlington Resources continues to sell its remaining trust
units, additional trust units will be available for sale in the
market and the market price of trust units could be impacted.
S-7
The assets of the trust represent interests in depleting
assets and, if BROG and the other operators developing the
underlying properties do not perform additional development
projects, the assets may deplete faster than expected.
Eventually, the assets of the trust will cease to produce in
commercial quantities and the trust will cease to receive
proceeds from such assets. In addition, a reduction in depletion
tax benefits may reduce the market value of the trust units.
The net proceeds payable to the trust are derived from the sale
of depleting assets. The reduction in proved reserve quantities
is a common measure of depletion. Future maintenance and
development projects on the underlying properties will affect
the quantity of proved reserves and can offset the reduction in
proved reserves. The timing and size of these projects will
depend on the market prices of crude oil and natural gas. If the
operators developing the underlying properties, including BROG,
do not implement additional maintenance and development
projects, the future rate of production decline of proved
reserves may be higher than the rate currently expected by the
trust and Burlington Resources.
Because the net proceeds payable to the trust are derived from
the sale of depleting assets, the portion of distributions to
trust unit holders attributable to depletion may be considered a
return of capital as opposed to a return on investment.
Distributions that are a return of capital will ultimately
diminish the depletion tax benefits available to the trust unit
holders, which could reduce the market value of the trust units
over time. Eventually, the properties underlying the
trusts net overriding royalty interests will cease to
produce in commercial quantities and the trust will, therefore,
cease to receive any distributions of net proceeds therefrom.
Operational risks and hazards associated with the development
of the underlying properties may decrease trust
distributions.
There are operational risks and hazards associated with the
production and transportation of crude oil and natural gas,
including without limitation natural disasters, blowouts,
explosions, fires, leakage of crude oil or natural gas, releases
of other hazardous materials, mechanical failures, cratering,
and pollution. Any of these or similar occurrences could result
in the interruption or cessation of operations, personal injury
or loss of life, property damage, damage to productive
formations or equipment, damage to the environment or natural
resources, or cleanup obligations. The operation of oil and gas
properties is also subject to various laws and regulations.
Non-compliance with such laws and regulations could subject the
operator to additional costs, sanctions or liabilities. The
uninsured costs resulting from any of the above or similar
occurrences could be deducted as a cost of production in
calculating the net proceeds payable to the trust and would
therefore reduce trust distributions by the amount of such
uninsured costs.
As oil and gas production from the Waddell Ranch properties is
processed through a single facility, future distributions from
those properties may be particularly susceptible to such risks.
A partial or complete shut-down of the operations at that
facility could disrupt the flow of royalty payments to the trust
and, accordingly, the trusts distributions to its unit
holders. In addition, although BROG is the operator of record of
the properties burdened by the Waddell Ranch overriding royalty
interests, none of the trustee, the trust unit holders or BROG
has an operating interest in the properties burdened by the
Texas Royalty properties overriding royalty interests. As
a result, these parties are not in a position to eliminate or
mitigate the above or similar occurrences with respect to such
properties and may not become aware of such occurrences prior to
any reduction in trust distributions which may result therefrom.
Terrorism and continued geopolitical hostilities could
adversely affect trust distributions or the market price of the
trust units.
Terrorist attacks and the threat of terrorist attacks, whether
domestic or foreign, as well as the military or other actions
taken in response, cause instability in the global financial and
energy markets. Terrorism and other geopolitical hostilities
could adversely affect trust distributions or the market price
of the trust units in unpredictable ways, including through the
disruption of fuel supplies and markets, increased volatility in
crude oil and natural gas prices, or the possibility that the
infrastructure on which the operators developing the underlying
properties rely could be a direct target or an indirect casualty
of an act of terror.
S-8
Trust unit holders and the trustee have no influence over the
operations on, or future development of, the underlying
properties.
Neither the trustee nor the trust unit holders can influence or
control the operations on, or future development of, the
underlying properties. The failure of an operator to conduct its
operations, discharge its obligations, deal with regulatory
agencies or comply with laws, rules and regulations, including
environmental laws and regulations, in a proper manner could
have an adverse effect on the net proceeds payable to the trust.
The current operators developing the underlying properties are
under no obligation to continue operations on the underlying
properties. Neither the trustee nor the trust unit holders have
the right to replace an operator.
The operators developing the Texas Royalty properties have no
duty to protect the interests of the trust unit holders, and do
not have sole discretion regarding development activities on the
underlying properties.
Under the terms of a typical operating agreement relating to oil
and gas properties, the operator owes a duty to working interest
owners to conduct its operations on the properties in a good and
workmanlike manner and in accordance with its best judgment of
what a prudent operator would do under the same or similar
circumstances. BROG is the operator of record of the Waddell
Ranch overriding royalty interests and in such capacity owes the
trust a contractual duty under the conveyance agreement for that
overriding royalty interest to operate the Waddell Ranch
properties in good faith and in accordance with a prudent
operator standard. The operators of the properties burdened by
the Texas Royalty properties overriding royalty interests,
however, have no contractual or fiduciary duty to protect the
interests of the trust or the trust unit holders other than
indirectly through its duty of prudent operations to the
unaffiliated owners of the working interests in those properties.
In addition, even if an operator, including BROG in the case of
the Waddell Ranch properties, concludes that a particular
development operation is prudent on a property, it may be unable
to undertake such activity unless it is approved by the
requisite approval of the working interest owners of such
properties (typically the owners of at least a majority of the
working interests). Even if the trust concludes that such
activities in respect of any of its overriding royalty interests
would be in its best interests, it has no right to cause those
activities to be undertaken.
The operator developing any underlying property may transfer
its interest in the property without the consent of the trust or
the trust unit holders.
Any operator developing any of the underlying properties may at
any time transfer all or part of its interest in the underlying
properties to another party. Neither the trust nor the trust
unit holders are entitled to vote on any transfer of the
properties underlying the trusts net overriding royalty
interests, and the trust will not receive any proceeds of any
such transfer. Following any transfer, the transferred property
will continue to be subject to the net overriding royalty
interests of the trust, but the net proceeds from the
transferred property will be calculated separately and paid by
the transferee. The transferee will be responsible for all of
the transferors obligations relating to calculating,
reporting and paying to the trust the net overriding royalties
from the transferred property, and the transferor will have no
continuing obligation to the trust for that property.
The operator developing any underlying property may abandon
the property, thereby terminating the related net overriding
royalty interest payable to the trust.
The operators developing the underlying properties, or any
transferee thereof, may abandon any well or property without the
consent of the trust or the trust unit holders if they
reasonably believe that the well or property can no longer
produce in commercially economic quantities. This could result
in the termination of the net overriding royalty interest
relating to the abandoned well or property.
The net overriding royalty interests can be sold and the
trust would be terminated.
The trustee must sell the net overriding royalty interests if
the holders of 75% or more of the trust units approve the sale
or vote to terminate the trust. The trustee must also sell the
net overriding royalty interests if they fail to generate net
revenue for the trust of at least $1,000,000 per year over
any
S-9
consecutive two-year period. Sale of all of the net overriding
royalty interests will terminate the trust. The net proceeds of
any sale will be distributed to the trust unit holders.
Trust unit holders have limited voting rights and have
limited ability to enforce the trusts rights against the
current or future operators developing the underlying
properties.
The voting rights of a trust unit holder are more limited than
those of stockholders of most public corporations. For example,
there is no requirement for annual meetings of trust unit
holders or for an annual or other periodic re-election of the
trustee. Additionally, trust unit holders have no voting rights
in BROG or in Burlington Resources.
The trust indenture and related trust law permit the trustee and
the trust to sue BROG, Riverhill Energy Corporation or any other
future operators developing the underlying properties to compel
them to fulfill the terms of the conveyance of the net
overriding royalty interests. If the trustee does not take
appropriate action to enforce provisions of the conveyance, the
recourse of the trust unit holders would likely be limited to
bringing a lawsuit against the trustee to compel the trustee to
take specified actions. Trust unit holders probably would not be
able to sue BROG, Riverhill Energy Corporation or any other
future operators developing the underlying properties.
Financial information of the trust is not prepared in
accordance with GAAP.
The financial statements of the trust are prepared on a modified
cash basis of accounting, which is a comprehensive basis of
accounting other than accounting principles generally accepted
in the United States, or GAAP. Although this basis of accounting
is permitted for royalty trusts by the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission, the financial statements of the trust
differ from GAAP financial statements because revenues are not
accrued in the month of production and cash reserves may be
established for specified contingencies and deducted which could
not be accrued in GAAP financial statements.
The limited liability of trust unit holders is uncertain.
The trust unit holders are not protected from the liabilities of
the trust to the same extent that a shareholder would be
protected from a corporations liabilities. The structure
of the trust does not include the interposition of a limited
liability entity such as a corporation or limited partnership
which would provide further limited liability protection to
trust unit holders. While the trustee is liable for any excess
liabilities incurred if the trustee fails to insure that such
liabilities are to be satisfied only out of trust assets, under
the laws of Texas, which are unsettled on this point, a holder
of units may be jointly and severally liable for any liability
of the trust if the satisfaction of such liability was not
contractually limited to the assets of the trust and the assets
of the trust and the trustee are not adequate to satisfy such
liability. As a result, trust unit holders may be exposed to
personal liability.
USE OF PROCEEDS
In connection with this offering, BROG entered into an agreement
with an affiliate of Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, pursuant to
which such affiliate agreed to act as a qualified intermediary
in order to facilitate a like-kind exchange under
Section 1031 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Under
the terms of this agreement, the net proceeds from this offering
after expenses, which Burlington Resources estimates will be
approximately $129.1 million, or approximately
$148.5 million if the underwriters exercise their purchase
option in full, will be reinvested by Burlington Resources
through Wachovias affiliate in assets, which consist
primarily of oil and gas properties.
The trust will not receive any proceeds from the sale of the
trust units, which are owned indirectly by Burlington Resources.
Burlington Resources will use remaining proceeds received from
the sale of the trust units offered by this prospectus
supplement, if any, for acquisitions or for general corporate
purposes.
S-10
SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
The following table sets forth certain selected financial data
of the trust for each of the periods indicated. This information
should be read in conjunction with the trusts consolidated
financial statements, related notes and other financial
information incorporated by reference in this prospectus
supplement. Please read Where You Can Find More
Information.
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Nine Months Ended | |
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Year Ended December 31, | |
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September 30, | |
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2000 | |
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2001 | |
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2002 | |
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2003 | |
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2004 | |
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2004 | |
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2005 | |
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(In thousands, except per unit amounts) | |
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(Unaudited) | |
Income Statement Data:
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Royalties(1):
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Oil royalty income
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$ |
24,902 |
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$ |
22,467 |
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$ |
15,013 |
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$ |
17,928 |
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$ |
27,181 |
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Gas royalty income
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10,934 |
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17,349 |
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8,817 |
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14,668 |
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17,836 |
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Total royalty income(2)(3)
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$ |
35,836 |
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$ |
39,816 |
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$ |
23,831 |
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$ |
32,596 |
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$ |
45,017 |
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$ |
29,899 |
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$ |
42,266 |
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Distributable Income:
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Interest income
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85 |
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78 |
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17 |
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14 |
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20 |
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|
11 |
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|
37 |
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Total Income
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$ |
35,921 |
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$ |
39,894 |
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$ |
23,848 |
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$ |
32,610 |
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$ |
45,037 |
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$ |
29,910 |
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$ |
42,303 |
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Expenditures general and administrative
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376 |
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421 |
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432 |
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|
497 |
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|
490 |
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|
|
413 |
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|
|
648 |
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Distributable income
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$ |
35,545 |
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$ |
39,473 |
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$ |
23,415 |
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$ |
32,113 |
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$ |
44,547 |
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$ |
29,497 |
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$ |
41,655 |
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Distributable income per unit (46,608,796 Units)
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$ |
0.76 |
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$ |
0.85 |
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$ |
0.50 |
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$ |
0.69 |
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$ |
0.96 |
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$ |
0.63 |
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$ |
0.89 |
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Assets:
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Cash and short-term investments
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$ |
3,056 |
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$ |
1,842 |
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$ |
2,371 |
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$ |
2,874 |
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$ |
5,429 |
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$ |
4,523 |
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$ |
6,091 |
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Net overriding royalty interests in producing oil & gas
properties net(2)(3)
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2,595 |
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2,371 |
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2,172 |
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1,992 |
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1,795 |
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1,852 |
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1,660 |
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Total assets
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$ |
5,651 |
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$ |
4,214 |
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$ |
4,544 |
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$ |
4,866 |
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$ |
7,224 |
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$ |
6,375 |
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$ |
7,751 |
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Liabilities and Trust Corpus: |
Distribution payable to unit holders
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$ |
3,056 |
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$ |
1,842 |
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$ |
2,371 |
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$ |
2,874 |
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$ |
5,429 |
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$ |
4,523 |
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$ |
6,091 |
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Trust corpus 46,608,796 units of beneficial interest
authorized and outstanding
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|
2,595 |
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2,371 |
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2,172 |
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|
1,992 |
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1,795 |
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|
1,852 |
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|
1,660 |
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Total liabilities and trust corpus
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$ |
5,651 |
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$ |
4,214 |
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$ |
4,544 |
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$ |
4,866 |
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$ |
7,224 |
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$ |
6,375 |
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$ |
7,751 |
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Changes in Trust Corpus:
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Trust corpus, beginning of period
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$ |
2,890 |
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$ |
2,595 |
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$ |
2,371 |
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$ |
2,172 |
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$ |
1,992 |
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$ |
1,992 |
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$ |
1,795 |
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Amortization of net overriding royalty interests(2)(3)
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(295 |
) |
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|
(224 |
) |
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|
(199 |
) |
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|
(181 |
) |
|
|
(196 |
) |
|
|
(140 |
) |
|
|
(135 |
) |
Distributable income
|
|
|
35,545 |
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|
|
39,473 |
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|
|
23,415 |
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|
|
32,113 |
|
|
|
44,547 |
|
|
|
29,497 |
|
|
|
41,655 |
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Distributions declared
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|
|
(35,545 |
) |
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|
(39,473 |
) |
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|
(23,415 |
) |
|
|
(32,113 |
) |
|
|
(44,547 |
) |
|
|
(29,497 |
) |
|
|
(41,655 |
) |
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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Trust corpus, end of period
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|
$ |
2,595 |
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|
$ |
2,371 |
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$ |
2,172 |
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$ |
1,992 |
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$ |
1,795 |
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$ |
1,852 |
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$ |
1,660 |
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(1) |
The trust discloses oil and gas royalty income information
separately on an annual basis only. |
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(2) |
The amounts to be distributed to unit holders (Monthly
Distribution Amounts) are determined on a monthly basis.
The Monthly Distribution Amount is an amount equal to the sum of
cash received by the trustee during a calendar month
attributable to the royalties, any reduction in cash reserves
and any other cash receipts of the trust, including interest,
reduced by the sum of liabilities paid and any increase in cash
reserves. If the Monthly Distribution Amount for any monthly
period is a negative |
S-11
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number, then the distribution will be zero for such month. To
the extent the distribution amount is a negative number, that
amount will be carried forward and deducted from future monthly
distributions until the cumulative distribution calculation
becomes a positive number, at which time a distribution will be
made. Unit holders of record will be entitled to receive the
calculated Monthly Distribution Amount for each month on or
before 10 business days after the monthly record date, which is
generally the last business day of each calendar month. |
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The cash received by the trustee consists of the amounts
received by owners of the interest burdened by the royalties
from the sale of production less the sum of applicable taxes,
accrued production costs, development and drilling costs,
operating charges and other costs and deductions, multiplied by
75% in the case of the Waddell Ranch properties and 95% in the
case of the Texas Royalty properties. |
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The initial carrying value of the royalties ($10,975,216)
represented Southland Royaltys historical net book value
at the date of the transfer to the trust. |
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(3) |
The financial statements of the trust are prepared on the
following basis: |
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Royalty income recorded is the amount computed and paid by the
working interest owner to the trustee on behalf of the trust. |
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Trust expenses recorded are based on liabilities paid and cash
reserves established out of cash received or borrowed funds for
liabilities and contingencies. |
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|
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Distributions to unit holders are recorded when declared by the
trustee. |
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|
The financial statements of the trust differ from financial
statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles
generally accepted in the United States of America
(GAAP) because revenues are not accrued in the month
of production and certain cash reserves may be established for
contingencies which would not be accrued in financial statements
prepared in accordance with GAAP. Amortization of the royalties
calculated on a unit-of-production basis is charged directly to
trust corpus. This comprehensive basis of accounting other than
GAAP corresponds to the accounting permitted for royalty trusts
by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as specified
by Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 12:E, Financial
Statements of Royalty Trusts. |
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|
(4) |
Due to the rounding convention used in the preceding table to
show amounts in thousands of dollars, amounts presented as
totals may not equal the sum of their component amounts. |
S-12
RECENT SALES PRICES AND DISTRIBUTIONS
The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the
high and low sales prices per trust unit and the amount of
quarterly cash distributions per trust unit made by the trust.
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Sales Price Range | |
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Distributions | |
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| |
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per Trust | |
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High | |
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Low | |
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Unit* | |
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| |
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| |
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| |
2005
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|
|
|
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Fourth Quarter (through December 15, 2005)
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|
$ |
17.00 |
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$ |
15.11 |
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|
$ |
0.286 |
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Third Quarter
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|
|
17.23 |
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|
|
14.92 |
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|
|
0.341 |
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|
Second Quarter
|
|
|
15.50 |
|
|
|
10.75 |
|
|
|
0.268 |
|
|
First Quarter
|
|
|
15.57 |
|
|
|
12.13 |
|
|
|
0.284 |
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2004
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|
|
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|
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Fourth Quarter
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$ |
15.29 |
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$ |
11.06 |
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$ |
0.323 |
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Third Quarter
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|
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11.87 |
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|
|
9.01 |
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|
|
0.248 |
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Second Quarter
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|
|
9.32 |
|
|
|
7.80 |
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|
|
0.191 |
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|
First Quarter
|
|
|
9.45 |
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|
|
7.00 |
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|
|
0.194 |
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|
|
* |
Reflects, with respect to fourth quarter 2005 distributions, a
per-unit distribution of $0.149470 declared on November 18,
2005, payable on December 14, 2005 to unit holders of
record on November 30, 2005. |
At November 30, 2005, there were 46,608,796 trust units
outstanding and approximately 1,590 trust unit holders of
record.
The trusts monthly distributions are dependent upon the
prices realized from the sale of crude oil and natural gas and
the operating and capital expenses associated with the
underlying properties. Crude oil and natural gas prices can
fluctuate widely on a month-to-month basis in response to a
variety of factors that are beyond the control of the trust and
Burlington Resources. Factors that contribute to price
fluctuation include, among others, political conditions in major
oil producing regions, especially the Middle East, worldwide
economic conditions, weather conditions, the supply and price of
domestic and foreign crude oil and natural gas, the level of
consumer demand, the price and availability of alternative
fuels, the proximity to, and capacity of, transportation
facilities, the effect of worldwide energy conservation measures
and the nature and extent of government regulation and taxation.
SELLING UNIT HOLDER
This prospectus supplement covers the offering for resale of up
to 8,600,000 trust units by a selling unit holder, BROG.
Burlington Resources is the direct parent company of BROG, which
is the successor to Southland Royalty.
As of December 12, 2005, BROG owned 19,227,741 trust
units, or 41.3% of the trusts issued and outstanding
units. Following the completion of this offering, BROG will own
10,627,741 trust units, or approximately 22.8% of the
trusts issued and outstanding units, or
9,337,741 trust units (20.0%) if the underwriters exercise
their purchase option in full.
BROG owns a portion of the fee mineral interests in the tracts
constituting the Waddell Ranch properties, which are burdened by
the trusts 75% net overriding royalty in oil and gas
produced and sold from such Waddell Ranch properties. BROG is
also the operator of record with respect to those properties. To
the extent it has the legal right to do so, BROG is responsible
for marketing the production from the Waddell Ranch properties.
BROG is also required to maintain books and records sufficient
to determine the amounts payable to the trustee in respect of
the Waddell Ranch net overriding royalty. However, nothing in
the trust indenture or the conveyance of the net overriding
royalty in production from the Waddell Ranch properties
precludes BROG from transferring or disposing of its interest in
those properties. For more information about the trusts
relationship with the selling unit holder, please see the
trusts Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2004, as amended by Amendment 1 thereto on Form 10-K/
A filed April 6, 2005 and Amendment 2 thereto on
Form 10-K/ A filed July 25, 2005, which is
incorporated herein by reference.
S-13
UNDERWRITING
Lehman Brothers Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, the
joint book-running managers, are acting as representatives of
the underwriters named below. Under the terms of an underwriting
agreement, which we will file as an exhibit to our current
report on Form 8-K relating to this offering, each of the
underwriters named below, subject to certain conditions, has
severally agreed to purchase the respective number of trust
units from Burlington Resources indicated in the following table:
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|
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Number of |
Underwriters |
|
Trust Units |
|
|
|
Lehman Brothers Inc.
|
|
|
3,078,800 |
|
Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC
|
|
|
2,003,800 |
|
Citigroup Global Markets Inc.
|
|
|
1,444,800 |
|
RBC Capital Markets Corporation
|
|
|
791,200 |
|
Credit Suisse First Boston LLC
|
|
|
516,000 |
|
UBS Securities LLC
|
|
|
490,200 |
|
Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated
|
|
|
275,200 |
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|
|
|
|
|
Total
|
|
|
8,600,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
The underwriting agreement provides that the underwriters are
obligated to purchase, subject to certain conditions, all of the
trust units from Burlington Resources in the offering if any are
purchased, other than those covered by the option described
below and until this option is exercised.
Burlington Resources has granted the underwriters an option
exercisable for 30 days after the date of this prospectus
supplement to purchase, from time to time, in whole or in part,
up to an aggregate of 1,290,000 additional trust units at
the initial public offering price less the underwriting
discounts and commissions. This option may be exercised if the
underwriters sell more than 8,600,000 trust units in
connection with this offering. To the extent that this option is
exercised, each underwriter will be obligated, subject to
certain conditions, to purchase its pro rata portion of these
additional trust units based on the underwriters
percentage underwriting commitment in the offering as indicated
in the table at the beginning of this Underwriting section.
The trust and Burlington Resources have been advised by the
underwriters that the underwriters propose to offer the trust
units directly to the public at the initial public offering
price set forth on the cover page of this prospectus supplement
and to selected dealers, who may include the underwriters, at
the offering price less a selling concession not in excess of
$0.43 per unit. Any such securities dealers may resell any
trust units purchased from the underwriters to certain other
brokers or dealers at a discount of up to $0.10 per unit
from the initial public offering price. If all the units are not
sold at the initial public offering price, the underwriters may
change the offering price and other selling terms.
The following table shows the underwriting discounts and
commissions Burlington Resources will pay to the underwriters.
These amounts are shown assuming both no exercise and full
exercise of the underwriters option to purchase
1,290,000 additional trust units from Burlington Resources.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
No Exercise |
|
Full Exercise |
|
|
|
|
|
Paid by Burlington Resources per trust unit
|
|
$ |
.70875 |
|
|
$ |
.70875 |
|
|
Total
|
|
$ |
6,095,250 |
|
|
$ |
7,009,538 |
|
Burlington Resources estimates that the total expenses for this
trust unit offering, excluding underwriting discounts and
commissions, will be approximately $.3 million. Burlington
Resources will reimburse the trust for any expenses incurred by
the trust in connection with this offering.
Burlington Resources has agreed that without the prior written
consent of each of Lehman Brothers Inc. and Wachovia Capital
Markets, LLC neither it nor its wholly owned subsidiaries will
directly or indirectly, offer, pledge, announce the intention to
sell, sell, contract to sell, sell an option or contract to
purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any
option, right or warrant to purchase or otherwise transfer or
dispose of any trust units or any securities which may be
converted into or exchanged
S-14
for trust units or enter into any swap or other agreement that
transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences
of ownership of trust units for a period of 90 days after
the date of this prospectus supplement other than permitted
transfers.
Burlington Resources and the trust have agreed to indemnify the
underwriters against certain liabilities relating to the
offering, including liabilities under the Securities Act of
1933, as amended, and liabilities arising from breaches of the
representations and warranties contained in the underwriting
agreement or to contribute to payments that may be required to
be made in respect of these liabilities.
The representatives may engage in stabilizing transactions,
short sales and purchases to cover positions created by short
sales and penalty bids or purchases for the purpose of pegging,
fixing or maintaining the price of the trust units in accordance
with Regulation M under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
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|
|
|
Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase the underlying
security so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a
specified maximum. |
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|
|
A short position involves a sale by the underwriters of trust
units in excess of the number of trust units the underwriters
are obligated to purchase in the offering, which creates the
syndicate short position. This short position may be either a
covered short position or a naked short position. In a covered
short position, the number of trust units involved in the sales
made by the underwriters in excess of the number of trust units
they are obligated to purchase is not greater than the number of
trust units that they may purchase by exercising their option to
purchase additional trust units. In a naked short position, the
number of trust units involved is greater than the number of
trust units in their option to purchase additional trust units.
The underwriters may close out any short position by either
exercising their option to purchase additional trust units
and/or purchasing trust units in the open market. In determining
the source of trust units to close out the short position, the
underwriters will consider, among other things, the price of
trust units available for purchase in the open market as
compared to the price at which they may purchase trust units
through their option to purchase additional trust units. A naked
short position is more likely to be created if the underwriters
are concerned that there could be downward pressure on the price
of the trust units in the open market after pricing that could
adversely affect investors who purchase in the offering. |
|
|
|
Syndicate covering transactions involve purchases of the trust
units in the open market after the distribution has been
completed in order to cover syndicate short positions. |
|
|
|
Penalty bids permit the representatives to reclaim a selling
concession from a syndicate member when the trust units
originally sold by the syndicate member are purchased in a
stabilizing or syndicate covering transaction to cover a
syndicate short position. |
These stabilizing transactions, syndicate covering transactions
and penalty bids may have the effect of raising or maintaining
the market price of the trust units or preventing or retarding a
decline in the market price of the trust units. As a result, the
price of the trust units may be higher than the price that might
otherwise exist in the open market. These transactions may be
effected on the New York Stock Exchange or otherwise and, if
commenced, may be discontinued at any time.
Neither the trust, Burlington Resources, nor any of the
underwriters make any representation or prediction as to the
direction or magnitude of any effect that the transactions
described above may have on the price of the trust units. In
addition, neither the trust, Burlington Resources, nor any of
the underwriters make representation that the representatives
will engage in these stabilizing transactions or that any
transaction, once commenced, will not be discontinued without
notice.
Certain of the underwriters and their affiliates have performed
investment banking, financial advisory and other commercial
services for Burlington Resources and its affiliates in the
ordinary course of business from time to time for which they
have received customary fees and expenses. The underwriters and
their affiliates may, from time to time in the future, engage in
transactions with and perform such services for Burlington
Resources and its affiliates in the ordinary course of business.
Affiliates of certain of the underwriters are also parties to
and lenders under Burlington Resources $1.5 billion
five-year revolving credit facility. Additionally, an affiliate
of Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC
S-15
will act as a qualified intermediary in connection with the
possible like-kind exchange to be effected
concurrently with the closing of this offering.
The decision of the underwriters to participate in this offering
was made independently of any of their respective affiliates
that are lenders under Burlington Resources term loan and
such lenders had no involvement in determining whether the
underwriters participated in this offering or the terms of this
offering.
A prospectus in electronic format may be made available on the
Internet sites or through other online services maintained by
one or more of the underwriters and/or selling group members
participating in this offering, or by their affiliates. In those
cases, prospective investors may view offering terms online and,
depending upon the particular underwriter or selling group
member, prospective investors may be allowed to place orders
online. The underwriters may agree with us to allocate a
specific number of shares for sale to online brokerage account
holders. Any such allocation for online distributions will be
made by the representatives on the same basis as other
allocations.
Other than the prospectus in electronic format, the information
on any underwriters or selling group members web
site and any information contained in any other web site
maintained by an underwriter or selling group member is not part
of the prospectus or the registration statement of which this
prospectus forms a part, has not been approved and/or endorsed
by us or any underwriter or selling group member in its capacity
as underwriter or selling group member and should not be relied
upon by investors.
S-16
LEGAL MATTERS
Andrews Kurth LLP, Houston, Texas, counsel for Burlington
Resources, will give legal opinions as to the validity of the
trust units being offered and as to matters described in the
section of the accompanying prospectus captioned Material
Federal Income Tax Consequences. Certain legal matters in
connection with the trust units offered hereby will be passed
upon for the trust by Thompson & Knight LLP, Dallas,
Texas. Certain legal matters in connection with the trust units
offered hereby will be passed upon for the underwriters by
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, New York, New York.
EXPERTS
Certain information included or incorporated by reference in
this prospectus supplement regarding the estimated quantities of
reserves of the underlying properties and net overriding royalty
interests owned by the trust, the future net revenues from such
reserves and the present value thereof is based on estimates of
the reserves and present values prepared by or derived from
estimates prepared by Cawley, Gillespie & Associates,
Inc., independent petroleum engineers.
Certain information incorporated by reference in this prospectus
supplement regarding the estimated reserves of Burlington
Resources is based on or derived from estimates reviewed by
Miller and Lents, Ltd. and Sproule Associates Limited,
independent oil and gas consultants.
The financial statements and the trustees report on the
effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting of
Permian Basin Royalty Trust incorporated in this prospectus by
reference from the Trusts Annual Report on Form 10-K
and Amendment 1 on Form 10-K/ A for the year ended
December 31, 2004, have been audited by Deloitte &
Touche LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as
stated in their reports, which are incorporated herein by
reference, and have been so incorporated in reliance upon the
reports of such firm given upon their authority as experts in
accounting and auditing.
With respect to the unaudited interim financial information for
the periods ended March 31, 2005, June 30, 2005 and
September 30, 2005 which is incorporated herein by
reference, Deloitte & Touche LLP, an independent registered
public accounting firm, have applied limited procedures in
accordance with standards of the Public Company Accounting
Oversight Board (United States) for a review of such
information. However, as stated in their reports included in the
Trusts Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the
quarters ended March 31, 2005, June 30, 2005 and
September 30, 2005 and incorporated by reference herein,
they did not audit and they do not express an opinion on that
interim financial information. Accordingly, the degree of
reliance on their report on such information should be
restricted in light of the limited nature of the review
procedures applied. Deloitte & Touche LLP are not subject to
the liability provisions of Section 11 of the Securities
Act of 1933 for their report on the unaudited interim financial
information because those reports are not reports or
a part of the registration statement prepared or
certified by an accountant within the meaning of Sections 7
and 11 of the Act.
The consolidated financial statements and managements
assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over
financial reporting (which is included in Managements
Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting) of
Burlington Resources incorporated in this prospectus supplement
by reference to the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2004 have been so incorporated in
reliance on the report of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an
independent registered public accounting firm, given on the
authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting.
S-17
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Some statements made by the trust and Burlington Resources in
this prospectus supplement, including information in documents
incorporated by reference, are prospective and constitute
forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and
Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended. All statements, other than statements of historical
fact, that address activities, events, outcomes and other
matters that Burlington Resources or the trust plans, expects,
intends, assumes, believes, budgets, predicts, forecasts,
projects, estimates or anticipates (and other similar
expressions) will, should or may occur in the future are
forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors, many of which are beyond the control of the trust and
Burlington Resources. These risks include, but are not limited
to:
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|
|
uncertainty of estimates of future crude oil and natural gas
production; |
|
|
|
uncertainty as to timing and amount of operating expenses and
capital expenditures; |
|
|
|
uncertainty of production and development costs; |
|
|
|
commodity price fluctuations; |
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|
|
the overriding royalty interests owned by the trust are
depleting assets and will eventually cease to produce oil and
natural gas in commercial quantities; |
|
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|
inflation; |
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|
lack of availability of goods and services; |
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environmental risks; |
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|
drilling and other operating risks; |
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|
inability of the trust to control operations on its royalty
properties; |
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litigation risks; |
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|
regulatory changes; and |
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|
|
uncertainties inherent in estimating proved crude oil and
natural gas reserves and in projecting future rates of
production and timing of development expenditures. |
Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties described
above or elsewhere in this prospectus supplement occur, or
should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results
may differ materially from future results expressed or implied
by the forward-looking statements. All forward-looking
statements attributable to Burlington Resources or the trust are
expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary
statement.
S-18
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
The trust and Burlington Resources file annual, quarterly and
other reports and other information, and Burlington Resources
files proxy statements, with the SEC. The trusts and
Burlington Resources current SEC filings are available to
the public over the Internet or at the SECs web site at
http://www.sec.gov. You may also read and copy any of these
documents at the SECs public reference room at Station
Place, located at 100 F Street NE, Washington DC 20549. Please
call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the
operation of the public reference rooms.
The SEC allows the trust and Burlington Resources to
incorporate by reference the information the trust
and Burlington Resources file with them, which means that the
trust and Burlington Resources can disclose important
information to you by referring you to those documents. The
information incorporated by reference is considered to be an
important part of this prospectus supplement, and information
that the trust and Burlington Resources file later with the SEC
will automatically update and supersede this information. In all
cases, you should rely on the most recent information included
or incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement.
The trust incorporates by reference into this prospectus
supplement the documents listed below and any future filings
made with the SEC under Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14, or
15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 until the offering
of trust units made hereby is terminated:
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its annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
December 31, 2004, as amended by its Amendment 1 thereto on
Form 10-K/ A filed April 6, 2005 and Amendment 2
thereto on Form 10-K/ A filed July 25, 2005; |
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|
its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended
March 31, 2005, June 30, 2005 and September 30,
2005; |
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its current report on Form 8-K filed August 8,
2005; and |
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|
|
the description of trust units contained in the trusts
registration statement on Form 8-A, dated October 10,
1980, as subsequently amended. |
Under applicable SEC rules, Burlington Resources is treated as a
co-registrant with respect to the trust units. As a result,
other SEC rules require that certain SEC filings by Burlington
Resources be incorporated by reference into this prospectus
supplement. Notwithstanding the applicable SEC rules, however, a
purchaser of trust units will not acquire any interest in
Burlington Resources, its subsidiaries or any of the outstanding
securities of Burlington Resources. In accordance with
applicable SEC requirements, Burlington Resources incorporates
by reference into this prospectus supplement the documents
listed below and any future filings made with the SEC under
Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 until the offering of trust units made
hereby is terminated:
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|
its annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
December 31, 2004; |
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|
its current reports on Form 8-K filed January 31,
2005, April 29, 2005, June 2, 2005, August 8,
2005, August 22, 2005, December 13, 2005 and
December 14, 2005 (excluding, in all cases, any information
or exhibits furnished pursuant to Item 2.02 or
Item 7.01 of any current report on Form 8-K); and |
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|
its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended
March 31, 2005, June 30, 2005 and September 30,
2005. |
You may request a copy of these filings, in most cases without
exhibits, at no cost, by writing or telephoning us at our
principal executive offices located at each of the following
addresses:
|
|
|
Bank of America, N.A.
P.O. Box 830650
Dallas, Texas 75202
Attention: Trust Department
Telephone: (214) 209-2400 |
|
Burlington Resources Inc.
717 Texas, Suite 2100
Houston, Texas 77002
Attention: Corporate Secretary
Telephone: (713) 624-9000 |
S-19
PROSPECTUS
27,577,741 Trust Units
Permian Basin Royalty Trust
Burlington Resources Inc. may offer and sell in one or more
offerings up to 27,577,741 trust units representing undivided
shares of beneficial interest in Permian Basin Royalty Trust.
The trust units do not represent any interest in Burlington
Resources. The trust will not receive any of the proceeds of any
offering. You should read this prospectus and any supplement
carefully before you invest.
The trust units are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under
the symbol PBT. On April 13, 2005, the last
reported sales price for the trust units as reported on the New
York Stock Exchange was $13.05 per unit.
INVESTING IN THE TRUST UNITS INVOLVES RISKS. PLEASE READ
RISK FACTORS BEGINNING ON PAGE 5 OF THIS
PROSPECTUS.
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state
securities commission has approved or disapproved of these
securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or
complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal
offense.
You should rely only on the information included or
incorporated by reference in this prospectus or any prospectus
supplement. Neither the trust nor Burlington Resources has
authorized anyone else to provide you with different
information. Neither the trust nor Burlington Resources is
making an offer of these securities in any state where the offer
is not permitted. You should not assume that the information
incorporated by reference or provided in this prospectus or any
prospectus supplement is accurate as of any date other than the
date on the front of each of those documents.
The trust units may be sold directly, through agents from time
to time or through underwriters or dealers. If any agent of the
issuers or any underwriter is involved in the sale of the
securities, the name of the agent or underwriter and any
applicable commission or discount will be set forth in the
accompanying prospectus supplement.
This prospectus may be used to offer and sell securities only if
accompanied by a prospectus supplement.
The date of this Prospectus is April 22, 2005.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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i
ABOUT THIS PROSPECTUS
This prospectus is part of a registration statement that the
trust and Burlington Resources have filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission utilizing a shelf
registration process. Under this shelf registration process,
Burlington Resources may sell up to a total of
27,577,741 units of beneficial interest in the trust in one
or more offerings. This prospectus provides you with a general
description of the trust and Burlington Resources and the trust
units Burlington Resources may offer under this prospectus. The
information in this prospectus is accurate as of its date. You
should carefully read this prospectus, the prospectus supplement
and any additional information described under the heading
Where You Can Find More Information.
In this prospectus, references to the trust mean
Permian Basin Royalty Trust, references to Burlington
Resources mean Burlington Resources Inc. and references to
Southland Royalty mean Southland Royalty Company.
References to BROG mean Burlington Resources
Oil & Gas LP, a wholly owned subsidiary of Burlington
Resources. References to the trustee mean Bank of
America, N.A., as trustee for the trust, or any successor
trustee.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
The trust and Burlington Resources file annual, quarterly and
other reports and other information, and Burlington Resources
files proxy statements, with the SEC. The trusts and
Burlington Resources current SEC filings are available to
the public over the Internet or at the SECs web site at
http://www.sec.gov. You may also read and copy any of these
documents at the SECs public reference room located at
450 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20549. Please
call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the
operation of the public reference rooms.
The SEC allows the trust and Burlington Resources to
incorporate by reference the information the trust
and Burlington Resources file with them, which means that the
trust and Burlington Resources can disclose important
information to you by referring you to those documents. The
information incorporated by reference is considered to be an
important part of this prospectus, and information that the
trust and Burlington Resources file later with the SEC will
automatically update and supersede this information. In all
cases, you should rely on the most recent information included
or incorporated by reference in this prospectus.
The trust incorporates by reference into this prospectus the
documents listed below and any future filings made with the SEC
under Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14, or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 until the offering of trust
units made hereby is terminated:
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its annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
December 31, 2004, as amended by its Amendment 1
thereto on Form 10-K/A filed April 6, 2005; and |
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the description of trust units contained in the trusts
registration statement on Form 8-A, dated October 10,
1980, as subsequently amended. |
Under applicable SEC rules, Burlington Resources is treated as a
co-registrant with respect to the trust units. As a result,
other SEC rules require that certain SEC filings by Burlington
Resources be incorporated by reference into this prospectus.
Notwithstanding the applicable SEC rules, however, a purchaser
of trust units will not acquire any interest in Burlington
Resources, its subsidiaries or any of the outstanding securities
of Burlington Resources. In accordance with applicable SEC
requirements, Burlington Resources incorporates by reference
into this prospectus the documents listed below and any future
filings made with the SEC under Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14
or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 until the
offering of trust units made hereby is terminated:
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its annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
December 31, 2004; and |
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its current report on Form 8-K filed January 31, 2005. |
1
You may request a copy of these filings, in most cases without
exhibits, at no cost, by writing or telephoning us at our
principal executive offices located at each of the following
addresses:
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Bank of America, N.A.
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Burlington Resources Inc. |
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P.O. Box 830650
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717 Texas, Suite 2100 |
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Dallas, Texas 75202
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Houston, Texas 77002 |
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Attention: Trust Department
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Attention: Corporate Secretary |
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Telephone: (214) 209-2400
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Telephone: (713) 624-9000 |
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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Some statements made by the trust and Burlington Resources in
this prospectus, including information in documents incorporated
by reference, are prospective and constitute forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than statements of
historical fact, that address activities, events, outcomes and
other matters that Burlington Resources or the trust plans,
expects, intends, assumes, believes, budgets, predicts,
forecasts, projects, estimates or anticipates (and other similar
expressions) will, should or may occur in the future are
forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements
involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors, many of which are beyond the control of the trust and
Burlington Resources. These risks include, but are not limited
to:
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uncertainty of estimates of future crude oil and natural gas
production; |
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uncertainty of production and development costs; |
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commodity price fluctuations; |
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the overriding royalty interests owned by the trust are
depleting assets and will eventually cease to produce oil and
natural gas in commercial quantities; |
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inflation; |
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lack of availability of goods and services; |
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environmental risks; |
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drilling and other operating risks; |
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inability of the trust to control operations on its royalty
properties; |
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litigation risks; |
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regulatory changes; and |
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uncertainties inherent in estimating proved crude oil and
natural gas reserves and in projecting future rates of
production and timing of development expenditures. |
Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties described
above or elsewhere in this prospectus occur, or should
underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may
differ materially from future results expressed or implied by
the forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements
attributable to Burlington Resources or the trust are expressly
qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.
2
THE TRUST
The trust was created under the laws of the state of Texas on
November 3, 1980 by Southland Royalty Company. In
connection with the formation of the trust, the stockholders of
Southland Royalty approved and authorized that companys
conveyance of net overriding royalty interests (equivalent to
net profits interests) to the trust for the benefit of its
stockholders. Each stockholder of Southland Royalty of record on
the date of the trusts formation received one unit of
beneficial ownership in the trust for each share of Southland
Royalty common stock then held. In 1985, Southland Royalty
became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Burlington Northern Inc. In
1988, Burlington Northern transferred its natural resource
operations to Burlington Resources. As a result of this
transfer, Meridian Oil Inc., which was the parent company of
Southland Royalty, became a wholly owned direct subsidiary of
Burlington Resources. In 1996, Southland Royalty was merged with
and into Meridian Oil. As a result of this merger, the separate
corporate existence of Southland Royalty ceased and Meridian Oil
survived and succeeded to the ownership of all of the assets of
Southland Royalty and assumed all of its rights, powers,
privileges, liabilities and obligations. In 1996, Meridian Oil
changed its name to Burlington Resources Oil & Gas
Company, now Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company LP,
which is referred to in this prospectus as BROG.
BROG is a wholly owned subsidiary of Burlington Resources.
The trusts net overriding royalty interests constitute its
principal assets. These net overriding royalty interests
include: a 75% net overriding royalty carved out of
Southlands fee mineral interests in the Waddell Ranch in
Crane County, Texas; and a 95% net overriding royalty carved out
of Southlands major producing royalty interests in other
mature producing oil fields in Texas. The 95% net overriding
royalty is subject to the provisions of the lease agreements
under which it was created.
BROG continues to own the fee mineral interest in the Waddell
Ranch properties underlying the trusts net overriding
royalty interest and is the operator of record on those
properties. In 1997, BROG sold its interests in the other
properties underlying the trusts net overriding royalty
interests to Riverhill Energy Corporation, an energy company not
affiliated with Burlington Resources or its subsidiaries. As
required by the terms of the conveyance to the trust of its net
overriding royalty interests in those properties, Riverhill
Energy succeeded to all of the requirements upon and
responsibilities of BROG arising under the conveyance.
The function of the trustee is to collect the income
attributable to the royalty interests, to pay all expenses and
charges of the trust, and to then distribute the remaining
available income to the unit holders. The trust is not empowered
to carry on any business activity, conducts no research
activities and has no employees since all administrative
functions are performed by the trustee. The income to the trust
attributable to the net overriding royalty interests is not
subject in material respects to seasonal factors nor in any
manner related to or dependent upon patents, licenses,
franchises or concessions.
The Permian Basin Royalty Trust maintains its principal
executive offices at 901 Main Street, Dallas, Texas 75202,
telephone (214) 209-2400. Burlington Resources maintains
its principal executive offices at 717 Texas, Suite 2100,
Houston, Texas 77002, telephone (713) 624-9000.
3
SUMMARY RESERVE INFORMATION
The following table summarizes net proved reserves estimated as
of December 31, 2004 and certain related information for
the net overriding royalty interests and underlying properties
from the reserve report, dated February 25, 2005, prepared
for the trust by Cawley, Gillespie & Associates, Inc.,
independent petroleum engineers. Additional information
regarding the net proved reserves of the trust is provided in
the trusts annual report on Form 10-K for the
year ended December 31, 2004 and the notes to the financial
statements in the trusts annual report to security holders
which is filed as an exhibit to the trusts annual report
on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004.
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Year Ended | |
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December 31, 2004 | |
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(In thousands) | |
Proved Gas Reserves (Mcf)(a)
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27,985 |
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Proved Crude Oil Reserves (Bbls)(a)
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7,108 |
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Estimated Future Net Revenues(a)(b)
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$ |
424,965 |
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Discounted Estimated Future Net Revenues(a)(b)
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$ |
237,193 |
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(a) |
Reserve quantities and revenues shown in the preceding table
were estimated from projections of reserves and revenue
attributable to the combined Burlington Resources Oil &
Gas Company LP, Riverhill Energy and trust interests in the
properties underlying the trusts royalty interests.
Reserve quantities attributable to the trusts royalty
interests were estimated by allocating to the trusts
royalty interests a portion of the total estimated net reserve
quantities of the interests, based upon gross revenue less
production taxes. Because the reserve quantities attributable to
the trusts royalty interests are estimated using an
allocation of the reserves, any changes in prices or costs will
result in changes in the estimated reserve quantities allocated
to the trusts royalty interests. Therefore, the reserve
quantities estimated will vary if different future price and
cost assumptions occur. |
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(b) |
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Based on quantities of total proved reserves. |
There are many uncertainties inherent in estimating quantities
and values of proved reserves and in projecting future rates of
production and the timing of development expenditures. The
reserve data set forth above, although prepared by independent
petroleum engineers in a manner customary in the industry, are
estimates only, and actual quantities and values of crude oil
and natural gas are likely to differ from the estimated amounts
set forth. In addition, the reserve estimates for the net
overriding royalty interests will be affected by future changes
in sales prices for crude oil and natural gas produced and costs
that are deducted in calculating net proceeds from net
overriding royalty interests.
4
RISK FACTORS OF THE TRUST
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The market price for the trust units may not reflect the
value of the royalty interests held by the trust. |
The public trading price for the trust units tends to be tied to
the recent and expected levels of cash distribution on the trust
units. The amounts available for distribution by the trust vary
in response to numerous factors outside the control of the
trust, including prevailing prices for crude oil and natural gas
produced from the trusts royalty interests. The market
price is not necessarily indicative of the value that the trust
would realize if it sold those royalty interests to a third
party buyer. In addition, such market price is not necessarily
reflective of the fact that since the assets of the trust are
depleting assets, a portion of each cash distribution paid on
the trust units should be considered by investors as a return of
capital, with the remainder being considered as a return on
investment. There is no guarantee that distributions made to a
unit holder over the life of these depleting assets will equal
or exceed the purchase price paid by the unit holder.
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Crude oil and natural gas prices are volatile and
fluctuate in response to a number of factors. Lower prices could
reduce the net proceeds payable to the trust and trust
distributions. |
The trusts monthly distributions are highly dependent upon
the prices realized from the sale of crude oil and natural gas
and a material decrease in such prices could reduce the amount
of cash distributions paid to unit holders. Crude oil and
natural gas prices can fluctuate widely on a month-to-month
basis in response to a variety of factors that are beyond the
control of the trust and Burlington Resources. Factors that
contribute to price fluctuation include, among others:
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political conditions in major oil producing regions, especially
the Middle East; |
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worldwide economic conditions; |
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weather conditions; |
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the supply and price of domestic and foreign crude oil or
natural gas; |
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the level of consumer demand; |
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the price and availability of alternative fuels; |
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the proximity to, and capacity of, transportation facilities; |
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the effect of worldwide energy conservation measures; and |
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the nature and extent of governmental regulation and taxation. |
When crude oil and natural gas prices decline, the trust is
affected in two ways. First, net royalties are reduced. Second,
exploration and development activity on the underlying
properties may decline as some projects may become uneconomic
and are either delayed or eliminated. It is impossible to
predict future crude oil and natural gas price movements, and
this reduces the predictability of future cash distributions to
trust unit holders.
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Increased production and development costs attributable to
the net overriding royalty interests will result in decreased
trust distributions unless revenues also increase. |
Production and development costs attributable to the Waddell
Ranch net overriding royalty interest are deducted in the
calculation of the trusts share of net proceeds.
Accordingly, higher or lower production and development costs
will directly decrease or increase the amount received by the
trust for those net overriding royalty interests. For example,
Burlington Resources currently estimates that the costs of
electricity that will be included in production and development
costs deducted in calculating the trusts share of
2005 net proceeds will increase approximately 45% over the
electrical costs incurred during 2004 principally as a result of
higher fuel surcharges by the third party electricity provider
in response to the higher costs of natural gas consumed to
generate the electricity. These increased costs will reduce the
trust
5
share of 2005 net proceeds below the level that would exist
if such costs remained at the level experienced in 2004.
If production and development costs attributable to the Waddell
Ranch net overriding royalty interests exceed the gross proceeds
related to production from the underlying properties, the trust
will not receive net proceeds until future proceeds from
production exceed the total of the excess costs plus accrued
interest during the deficit period. Development activities may
not generate sufficient additional proceeds to repay the costs.
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Trust reserve estimates depend on many assumptions that
may prove to be inaccurate, which could cause both estimated
reserves and estimated future net revenues to be too high,
leading to write-downs of estimated reserves. |
The value of the trust units will depend upon, among other
things, the reserves attributable to the trusts net
overriding royalty interests in the underlying properties. The
calculations of proved reserves included in this prospectus are
only estimates, and estimating reserves is inherently uncertain.
In addition, the estimates of future net revenues are based upon
various assumptions regarding future production levels, prices
and costs that may prove to be incorrect over time.
The accuracy of any reserve estimate is a function of the
quality of available data, engineering interpretation and
judgment, and the assumptions used regarding the quantities of
recoverable crude oil and natural gas and the future prices of
crude oil and natural gas. Petroleum engineers consider many
factors and make many assumptions in estimating reserves. Those
factors and assumptions include:
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historical production from the area compared with production
rates from similar producing areas; |
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the effects of governmental regulation; |
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assumptions about future commodity prices, production and
development costs, taxes, and capital expenditures; |
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the availability of enhanced recovery techniques; and |
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relationships with landowners, working interest partners,
pipeline companies and others. |
Changes in any of these factors and assumptions can materially
change reserve and future net revenue estimates. The
trusts estimate of reserves and future net revenues is
further complicated because the trust holds an interest in net
overriding royalties and does not own a specific percentage of
the crude oil or natural gas reserves. Ultimately, actual
production, revenues and expenditures for the underlying
properties, and therefore actual net proceeds payable to the
trust, will vary from estimates and those variations could be
material. Results of drilling, testing and production after the
date of those estimates may require substantial downward
revisions or write-downs of reserves.
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The assets of the trust are depleting assets and, if BROG
and the other operators developing the underlying properties do
not perform additional development projects, the assets may
deplete faster than expected. Eventually, the assets of the
trust will cease to produce in commercial quantities and the
trust will cease to receive proceeds from such assets. In
addition, a reduction in depletion tax benefits may reduce the
market value of the trust units. |
The net proceeds payable to the trust are derived from the sale
of depleting assets. The reduction in proved reserve quantities
is a common measure of depletion. Future maintenance and
development projects on the underlying properties will affect
the quantity of proved reserves and can offset the reduction in
proved reserves. The timing and size of these projects will
depend on the market prices of crude oil and natural gas. If the
operators developing the underlying properties, including BROG,
do not implement additional maintenance and development
projects, the future rate of production decline of proved
reserves may be higher than the rate currently expected by the
trust and Burlington Resources.
6
Because the net proceeds payable to the trust are derived from
the sale of depleting assets, the portion of distributions to
trust unit holders attributable to depletion may be considered a
return of capital as opposed to a return on investment.
Distributions that are a return of capital will ultimately
diminish the depletion tax benefits available to the trust unit
holders, which could reduce the market value of the trust units
over time. Eventually, the overriding royalty interests will
cease to produce in commercial quantities and the trust will,
therefore, cease to receive any distributions of net proceeds
therefrom.
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Operational risks and hazards associated with the
development of the underlying properties may decrease trust
distributions. |
There are operational risks and hazards associated with the
production and transportation of crude oil and natural gas,
including without limitation natural disasters, blowouts,
explosions, fires, leakage of crude oil or natural gas,
mechanical failures, cratering, and pollution. Any of these or
similar occurrences could result in the interruption of
operations, personal injury or loss of life, property damage,
damage to productive formations or equipment, or damage to the
environment. The uninsured costs resulting from any of these or
similar occurrences would be deducted as a cost of production in
calculating the net proceeds payable to the trust and would
therefore reduce trust distributions by the amount of such
uninsured costs.
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Terrorism and continued hostilities in the Middle East
could decrease trust distributions or the market price of the
trust units. |
Terrorist attacks and the threat of terrorist attacks, whether
domestic or foreign, as well as the military or other actions
taken in response, cause instability in the global financial and
energy markets. Terrorism, the war in Iraq and other sustained
military campaigns could adversely affect trust distributions or
the market price of the trust units in unpredictable ways,
including through the disruption of fuel supplies and markets,
increased volatility in crude oil and natural gas prices, or the
possibility that the infrastructure on which the operators
developing the underlying properties rely could be a direct
target or an indirect casualty of an act of terror.
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Trust unit holders and the trustee have no influence over
the operations on, or future development of, the underlying
properties. |
Neither the trustee nor the trust unit holders can influence or
control the operations on, or future development of, the
underlying properties. The failure of an operator to conduct its
operations, discharge its obligations, deal with regulatory
agencies or comply with laws, rules and regulations, including
environmental laws and regulations, in a proper manner could
have an adverse effect on the net proceeds payable to the trust.
The current operators developing the underlying properties are
under no obligation to continue operations on the underlying
properties. Neither the trustee nor the trust unit holders have
the right to replace an operator.
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The operators developing the Texas Royalty properties have
no duty to protect the interests of the trust unit holders, and
do not have sole discretion regarding development activities on
the underlying properties. |
Under the terms of a typical operating agreement relating to oil
and gas properties, the operator owes a duty to working interest
owners to conduct its operations on the properties in a good and
workmanlike manner and in accordance with its best judgment of
what a prudent operator would do under the same or similar
circumstances. BROG is the operator of record of the Waddell
Ranch overriding royalty interests and in such capacity owes the
trust a contractual duty under the conveyance agreement for that
overriding royalty interest to operate the Waddell Ranch
properties in good faith and in accordance with a prudent
operator standard. The operators of the properties burdened by
the Texas Royalty properties overriding royalty interests,
however, have no contractual or fiduciary duty to protect the
interests of the trust or the trust unit holders other than
indirectly through its duty of prudent operations to the
unaffiliated owners of the working interests in those properties.
7
In addition, even if an operator, including BROG in the case of
the Waddell Ranch properties, concludes that a particular
development operation is prudent on a property, it may be unable
to undertake such activity unless it is approved by the
requisite approval of the working interest owners of such
properties (typically the owners of at least a majority of the
working interests). Even if the trust concludes that such
activities in respect of any of its overriding royalty interests
would be in its best interests, it has no right to cause those
activities to be undertaken.
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The operator developing any underlying property may
transfer its interest in the property without the consent of the
trust or the trust unit holders. |
Any operator developing any of the underlying properties may at
any time transfer all or part of its interest in the underlying
properties to another party. Neither the trust nor the trust
unit holders are entitled to vote on any transfer of the
properties underlying the trusts net overriding royalty
interests, and the trust will not receive any proceeds of any
such transfer. Following any transfer, the transferred property
will continue to be subject to the net overriding royalty
interests of the trust, but the net proceeds from the
transferred property will be calculated separately and paid by
the transferee. The transferee will be responsible for all of
the transferors obligations relating to calculating,
reporting and paying to the trust the net overriding royalties
from the transferred property, and the transferor will have no
continuing obligation to the trust for that property.
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The operator developing any underlying property may
abandon the property, thereby terminating the related net
overriding royalty interest payable to the trust. |
The operators developing the underlying properties, or any
transferee thereof, may abandon any well or property without the
consent of the trust or the trust unit holders if they
reasonably believe that the well or property can no longer
produce in commercially economic quantities. This could result
in the termination of the net overriding royalty interest
relating to the abandoned well or property.
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The net overriding royalty interests can be sold and the
trust would be terminated. |
The trustee must sell the net overriding royalty interests if
the holders of 75% or more of the trust units approve the sale
or vote to terminate the trust. The trustee must also sell the
net overriding royalty interests if they fail to generate net
revenue for the trust of at least $1,000,000 per year over
any consecutive two-year period. Sale of all of the net
overriding royalty interests will terminate the trust. The net
proceeds of any sale will be distributed to the trust unit
holders.
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Trust unit holders have limited voting rights and have
limited ability to enforce the trusts rights against the
current or future operators developing the underlying
properties. |
The voting rights of a trust unit holder are more limited than
those of stockholders of most public corporations. For example,
there is no requirement for annual meetings of trust unit
holders or for an annual or other periodic re-election of the
trustee. Additionally, trust unit holders have no voting rights
in BROG or in Burlington Resources.
The trust indenture and related trust law permit the trustee and
the trust to sue BROG, Riverhill Energy Corporation or any other
future operators developing the underlying properties to compel
them to fulfill the terms of the conveyance of the net
overriding royalty interests. If the trustee does not take
appropriate action to enforce provisions of the conveyance, the
recourse of the trust unit holders would likely be limited to
bringing a lawsuit against the trustee to compel the trustee to
take specified actions. Trust unit holders probably would not be
able to sue BROG, Riverhill Energy Corporation or any other
future operators developing the underlying properties.
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Financial information of the trust is not prepared in
accordance with GAAP. |
The financial statements of the trust are prepared on a modified
cash basis of accounting, which is a comprehensive basis of
accounting other than accounting principles generally accepted
in the United
8
States, or GAAP. Although this basis of accounting is permitted
for royalty trusts by the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission, the financial statements of the trust differ from
GAAP financial statements because revenues are not accrued in
the month of production and cash reserves may be established for
specified contingencies and deducted which could not be accrued
in GAAP financial statements.
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An audited 2004 statement of the calculation of net
proceeds has not yet been received by the trust from Riverhill
Energy Corporation and could vary materially from unaudited
quarterly computations. |
Pursuant to the terms of the original conveyances to the trust
of the net overriding royalties, the assignor or its successor
is obligated to furnish to the trust within 90 days after
the end of each calendar year an audited statement of the
calculation of net proceeds for such year in accordance with the
conveyance. Riverhill Energy Corporation, which succeeded to the
obligation of Southland Royalty Company under the conveyance in
respect of the Texas Royalty properties, has not furnished to
the trust such an audited statement for calendar year 2004. It
is possible that such audited statement could reflect
information that differs from the unaudited quarterly
computations of net proceeds furnished to the trust by Riverhill
Energy for 2004, which differences could be material.
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The limited liability of trust unit holders is
uncertain. |
The trust unit holders are not protected from the liabilities of
the trust to the same extent that a shareholder would be
protected from a corporations liabilities. The structure
of the trust does not include the interposition of a limited
liability entity such as a corporation or limited partnership
which would provide further limited liability protection to
trust unit holders. While the trustee is liable for any excess
liabilities incurred if the trustee fails to insure that such
liabilities are to be satisfied only out of trust assets, under
the laws of Texas, which are unsettled on this point, a holder
of units may be jointly and severally liable for any liability
of the trust if the satisfaction of such liability was not
contractually limited to the assets of the trust and the assets
of the trust and the trustee are not adequate to satisfy such
liability. As a result, trust unit holders may be exposed to
personal liability.
USE OF PROCEEDS
The trust will not receive any proceeds from the sale, in one or
more transactions, of any of the 27,577,741 trust units owned
indirectly by Burlington Resources and registered for sale
hereby. Burlington Resources will receive all net proceeds from
any sale of trust units described in this prospectus and any
prospectus supplement. Burlington Resources will use the net
proceeds received from any sale of the trust units offered by
this prospectus for general corporate purposes, unless
Burlington Resources specifies otherwise in an applicable
prospectus supplement.
RECENT SALES PRICES AND DISTRIBUTIONS
The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the
high and low sales prices per unit and the amount of quarterly
cash distributions per unit made by the trust.
Sales Price
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Distributions | |
2003 |
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High | |
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Low | |
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per Unit | |
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First Quarter
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$ |
7.45 |
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$ |
5.20 |
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$ |
0.145 |
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Second Quarter
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$ |
7.50 |
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$ |
5.45 |
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$ |
0.181 |
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Third Quarter
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$ |
8.79 |
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$ |
7.13 |
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$ |
0.185 |
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Fourth Quarter
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$ |
8.47 |
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$ |
7.66 |
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$ |
0.178 |
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9
Sales Price
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Distributions | |
2004 |
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High | |
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Low | |
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per Unit | |
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| |
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| |
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First Quarter
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$ |
9.45 |
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$ |
7.00 |
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$ |
0.194 |
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Second Quarter
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$ |
9.32 |
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$ |
7.80 |
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$ |
0.191 |
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Third Quarter
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$ |
11.87 |
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$ |
9.01 |
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$ |
0.248 |
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Fourth Quarter
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$ |
15.29 |
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$ |
11.06 |
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$ |
0.323 |
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Sales Price
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Distributions | |
2005 |
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High | |
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Low | |
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per Unit* | |
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| |
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| |
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First Quarter |
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$ |
15.57 |
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$ |
12.13 |
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$ |
0.284 |
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Second Quarter (through April 12, 2005) |
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$ |
14.26 |
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$ |
13.00 |
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* |
Including, with respect to first quarter distributions, a
per-unit distribution of $.0859 declared on March 21, 2005,
payable on April 14, 2005 to unitholders of record on
March 31, 2005. As of April 12, 2005 no
April, 2005 distribution has been announced or paid. |
At April 1, 2005, there were
46,608,796 trust units outstanding and approximately
1,623 unit holders of record.
The trusts monthly distributions are dependent upon the
prices realized from the sale of crude oil and natural gas.
Crude oil and natural gas prices can fluctuate widely on a
month-to-month basis in response to a variety of factors that
are beyond the control of the trust and Burlington Resources.
Factors that contribute to price fluctuation include, among
others, political conditions in major oil producing regions,
especially the Middle East, worldwide economic conditions,
weather conditions, the supply and price of domestic and foreign
crude oil and natural gas, the level of consumer demand, the
price and availability of alternative fuels, the proximity to,
and capacity of, transportation facilities, the effect of
worldwide energy conservation measures and the nature and extent
of government regulation and taxation.
DESCRIPTION OF TRUST UNITS
Each trust unit represents an equal undivided share of
beneficial interest in the trust and is evidenced by a
transferable certificate issued by the trustee. Each trust unit
entitles its holder to the same rights as the holder of any
other trust unit, and the trust has no other authorized or
outstanding class of equity security. Currently, there are
46,608,796 trust units outstanding and, if all of the units
included in this prospectus are sold, there will continue to be
46,608,796 units outstanding. The trust may not issue
additional units.
Distributions of Net Income
Distributions of trust income, the identity of unit holders
entitled to receive such distributions and the amounts of such
distributions are generally determined as of the last business
day of each calendar month. Unit holders of record as of the
monthly record date (which is defined in the trust
indenture and which, except in limited circumstances, will be
the last business day of each calendar month) are entitled to
receive the calculated monthly distribution amount
(as defined in the trust indenture) for such month on or before
ten business days after the monthly record date. The aggregate
monthly distribution amount is the excess of (i) net
revenues from the trust properties, plus any decrease in cash
reserves previously established for contingent liabilities and
any other cash receipts of the trust, over (ii) the
expenses and payments of liabilities of the trust, plus any net
increase in cash reserves for contingent liabilities.
The Waddell Ranch overriding royalty interest entitles the trust
to 75% of the net proceeds from production attributable to the
Waddell Ranch properties. Such net proceeds are generally equal
to the
10
gross proceeds from the sale of production less production costs
calculated on an accrual basis, such as development and drilling
costs, applicable taxes, operation charges and other costs,
deductions and reserves. Such net proceeds are determined
monthly. If the amounts deducted from gross proceeds in any
month exceed the gross proceeds generated during such month, the
excess amounts are carried forward to the succeeding months
until recovered in full. Pending such recovery, no amounts would
be distributed to the trust in respect of the Waddell Ranch
overriding royalty interest. The amount of such excess costs
over gross proceeds is often referred to by the trust as
excess production costs. Excess production costs can
also exist under the Texas Royalty properties overriding royalty
interest, which is a 95% net-overriding royalty interest carved
out of major producing royalty interests in other mature
producing Texas oil fields. If costs exceed gross proceeds for
either of the overriding royalty interests, such excess is
recovered only from proceeds generated in respect of the
overriding royalty interest from which such excess arose.
Transferability
The units of the trust are transferable on the books of the
trustee upon surrender of the certificates representing such
units in proper form for transfer in accordance with procedures
adopted by the trustee. No service charge is required for any
such transfer, although the trustee may require payment of
transfer taxes or other fees imposed by any governmental
authority.
Until a transfer is made in accordance with the procedures
specified by the trustee, the trustee may conclusively treat as
the owner of any unit for all purposes the holder shown on its
records. Any transfer of a unit in accordance with the
procedures established by the trustee will, as to the trustee,
vest in the transferee all rights of the transferor at the date
of transfer, except that a transfer of a unit after the monthly
record date for a distribution will not transfer the right of
the transferor to such distribution.
Mellon Investor Services, L.L.C. serves as transfer agent for
the units in the trust.
Periodic Reports
The trustee will mail as soon as practicable after the end of
each calendar quarter, to each person who was a unit holder on
any monthly record date during such quarter, a report
summarizing the assets and liabilities and the receipts and
disbursements of the trust for the quarter then ended and for
each month in such quarter. Within 90 days after the end of
each fiscal year, the trustee will mail to unit holders as of a
specified record date an annual report containing audited
financial statements of the trust. In addition, the trustee will
furnish to the unit holders such reports and in such manner as
are at any time required by law or by regulation of the New York
Stock Exchange.
The trustee files federal informational returns and state income
tax returns as required to comply with applicable laws and to
permit each holder of units to correctly report his share of the
income and deductions of the trust. The trustee treats all
income and deductions recognized during each month as having
been recognized on the monthly record date unless otherwise
advised by counsel or by the Internal Revenue Service. Such
information is included in the reports distributed by the
trustee to unit holders. Each holder of units and his duly
authorized agents have the right, during reasonable business
hours, to examine the books and records of the trust.
Liability of Unit Holders
The trustee is liable for any excess liabilities incurred if the
trustee fails to insure that such liabilities are to be
satisfied only out of trust assets regardless of whether the
assets are adequate to satisfy the liability. The trustee may
not represent to any third party dealing with the trustee or the
trust that such liabilities are recoverable from the amounts
distributed to, or other assets owned by, the unit holders.
However, under the laws of Texas, which are unsettled on this
point, a holder of units may be jointly and severally liable for
any liability of the trust if the satisfaction of such liability
was not contractually limited to the assets of the trust and the
assets of the trust and the trustee are not adequate to satisfy
such liability.
11
Possible Requirement That Units Be Divested
The trust indenture imposes no restrictions based on nationality
or other status of the persons or other entities which are
eligible to hold units. However, the trust indenture provides
that if at any time the trust is named a party in any judicial
or administrative proceeding which seeks the cancellation or
forfeiture of any property in which the trust has an interest
because of the nationality, or any other status, of any one or
more unit holders, the following procedures will be applicable:
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(i) The trustee will give written notice to each unit
holder whose nationality or other status is an issue in the
proceeding as to the existence of such controversy. The notice
will contain a reasonable summary of such controversy and will
constitute a demand to each such holder that he dispose of his
units, to a party not of the nationality or other status at
issue in the proceeding described in the notice, within
30 days after the date of the notice. |
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(ii) If any such unit holder fails to dispose of his units,
as required by the notice, within 30 days after the date of
the notice, the trustee has the preemptive right, at its sole
option and during the 90 days following the termination of
the 30-day period specified in the notice, to purchase any unit
not so transferred for a cash price equal to the closing price
of the units on the New York Stock Exchange on the last business
day prior to the expiration of the 30-day period stated in the
notice. The procedures for any such purchase are more fully
described in the trust indenture. |
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(iii) The trustee may, at its sole discretion, cancel any
units acquired in accordance with the foregoing procedures or
may sell such units, either publicly or privately, in accordance
with all applicable laws. The proceeds of any such sale of units
will constitute proceeds of the trust. |
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(iv) The trustee may, in its sole discretion, cause the
trust to borrow any amounts required to purchase units in
accordance with the procedures described above. |
Voting Rights of Trust Unit Holders
While unit holders in the trust have voting rights, these rights
are not comparable to those of stockholders of a corporation.
For example, there is no requirement for annual meetings or for
annual or other periodic re-election of the trustee.
The trust indenture may be amended by the affirmative vote of
the holders of a majority of the units who are present in person
or represented by proxy at any duly called meeting of unit
holders. However, no such amendment may (i) permit the
trust to engage in any business or any other investment
activity, (ii) alter the relative rights of unit holders or
(iii) permit the trustee to distribute the assets of the
trust in kind to unit holders. In addition, certain
special voting requirements relating to termination of a trust
or sale of its properties can be amended only if such amendment
is approved by the holders of not less than 75% of the units.
The removal of the trustee requires the affirmative vote of the
holders of at least a majority of the units of the trust, while
the appointment of a successor requires only the affirmative
vote of the holders of at least a majority of the units
represented at a meeting at which a quorum is present.
Unless the trustee must sell the trust assets pursuant to the
terms of the trust indenture, the sale of all or any part of the
assets of the trust must be authorized by the affirmative vote
of holders of at least 75% of the units. The trust can be
terminated by the unit holders only if such termination is
approved by the holders of not less than 75% of the units. The
special voting requirements described in this paragraph can be
amended or revoked only upon the approval of the holders of at
least 75% of the units.
Meetings of unit holders may be called by the trustee at any
time at its discretion and will be called by the trustee at the
written request of holders of not less than 15% of the units
then outstanding.
Notice of any meeting of unit holders will be given not less
than 20 nor more than 60 days prior to the date of such
meeting. The notice will state the purpose of the meeting, and
no other matter will be acted upon at the meeting.
12
Comparison of Trust Units and Common Stock
You should be aware of the following ways in which an investment
in trust units is different from an investment in common stock
of a corporation.
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Trust Units |
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Common Stock |
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Voting
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Limited voting rights. |
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Corporate statutes provide specific voting rights to
stockholders on electing directors and major corporate
transactions. |
Income Tax
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The trust is not subject to income tax; trust unit holders are
directly subject to income tax on their proportionate shares of
trust income, adjusted for tax deductions. |
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Corporations are taxed on their income, and their stockholders
are taxed on dividends. |
Distributions
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Substantially all trust income is distributed to trust unit
holders. |
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Stockholders receive dividends at the discretion of the board of
directors. |
Business and Assets
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Interest is limited to specific assets with a finite economic
life. |
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A corporation conducts an active business for an unlimited term
and can reinvest its earnings and raise additional capital to
expand. |
Limited Liability
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Texas law and the laws of the other states do not specifically
provide for limited liability of trust unit holders. However,
due to the size and nature of the trust assets, liability in
excess of the trust unit holders investment is extremely
unlikely. |
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Corporate laws provide that a stockholder is not liable for the
obligations and liabilities of the corporation, subject to
limited exceptions. |
Fiduciary Duties
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The trustee has a fiduciary duty to trust unit holders. |
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Officers and directors have a fiduciary duty of loyalty to
stockholders and a duty to use due care in management and
administration of a corporation. |
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST INDENTURE
The following information and the information included under
Description of the Trust Units summarize the
material information contained in the trust indenture. This
summary may not contain all the information that is important to
you. For more detailed provisions concerning the trust, you
should read the trust indenture. A copy of the trust indenture
was filed as an exhibit to the trusts annual report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1980. Please
see the section entitled Where You Can Find More
Information above.
Creation and Organization of the Trust
The Permian Basin Royalty Trust is an express trust created
under the laws of the state of Texas by the Permian Basin
Royalty Trust Indenture entered into on November 3, 1980,
between Southland Royalty Company, which is the predecessor in
interest of BROG, and The First National Bank of
13
Fort Worth, as trustee. Bank of America, N.A., a banking
association organized under the laws of the United States, as
the successor of The First National Bank of Fort Worth, is
now the trustee of the trust. The principal office of the trust
is located at 901 Main Street, Dallas, Texas 75202 (telephone
number (214) 209-2400).
On October 23, 1980, the stockholders of Southland Royalty
approved and authorized that companys conveyance of net
overriding royalty interests (equivalent to net profits
interests) to the trust for the benefit of the stockholders of
Southland Royalty of record at the close of business on the date
of the conveyance consisting of a 75% net overriding royalty
interest carved out of that companys fee mineral interests
in the Waddell Ranch properties in Crane County, Texas and a 95%
net overriding royalty interest carved out of that
companys major producing royalty properties in Texas. The
conveyances of these interests were effective as to production
from and after 7:00 a.m. on November 1, 1980.
The net overriding royalty interests constitute the principal
asset of the trust and the beneficial interests in these
interests are divided into that number of units of beneficial
interest of the trust equal to the number of shares of the
common stock of Southland Royalty outstanding as of the close of
business on November 3, 1980. Each stockholder of Southland
Royalty of record at the close of business on November 3,
1980, received one unit for each share of the common stock of
Southland Royalty then held.
In 1985, Southland Royalty became an indirect wholly-owned
subsidiary of Burlington Northern Inc. In 1988, Burlington
Northern transferred its natural resource operations to
Burlington Resources, as a result of which Southland Royalty
became a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of Burlington
Resources.
Effective January 1, 1996, Southland Royalty, which was
then a direct wholly-owned subsidiary of Meridian Oil Inc., was
merged with and into Meridian Oil, by which action the separate
corporate existence of Southland Royalty ceased and Meridian Oil
survived and succeeded to the ownership of all of the assets of
Southland Royalty and assumed all of its rights, powers and
privileges, and all of its liabilities and obligations. In 1996,
Meridian Oil changed its name to Burlington Resources
Oil & Gas Company LP or BROG.
The beneficial interest in the trust is divided into 46,608,796
trust units. Each of the trust units represents an equal
undivided portion of the trust. You will find additional
information concerning the trust units in Description of
the Trust Units.
Amendment of the trust indenture requires a vote of at least a
majority of the outstanding trust units. However, no amendment
may:
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increase the power of the trustee to engage in business or
investment activities; |
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alter the rights of the trust unit holders as among
themselves; or |
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permit the trustee to distribute the assets of the trust
in kind to unit holders. |
Assets of the Trust
The assets of the trust consist of net overriding royalty
interests and any cash and temporary investments being held for
the payment of expenses and liabilities and for distribution to
the trust unit holders.
Duties and Limited Powers of the Trustee
The duties of the trustee are specified in the trust indenture
and by the laws of the State of Texas. The trustees
principal duties consist of:
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collecting income attributable to the net overriding royalty
interests; |
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paying expenses, charges and obligations of the trust from the
trusts income and assets; |
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distributing distributable income to the trust unit
holders; and |
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taking any action it deems necessary and advisable to best
achieve the purposes of the trust. |
14
The trustee may sell trust properties only as authorized by a
vote of the unit holders or upon termination of the trust.
However, pledges or other encumbrances and conveyances of
production payments to secure borrowings are permitted without
such authorization if the trustee determines such action to be
advisable. Any sale of trust properties must be for cash, and
the trustee is obligated to distribute the available net
proceeds of any such sale to the unit holders.
If a trust liability is contingent or uncertain in amount or not
yet currently due and payable, the trustee may create a cash
reserve to pay for the liability. If the trustee determines that
the cash on hand and the cash to be received is insufficient to
cover the trusts liability, the trustee may borrow funds
required to pay the liabilities. The trustee may borrow the
funds from any person, including itself. The trustee may also
mortgage the assets of the trust to secure payment of the
indebtedness. If the trustee borrows funds, the trust unit
holders will not receive distributions until the borrowed funds
are repaid.
Each month, the trustee will pay trust obligations and expenses
and distribute to the trust unit holders the remaining proceeds
received from the net overriding royalty interests. The cash
held by the trustee as a reserve against future liabilities or
for distribution at the next distribution date must be invested
in:
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interest bearing obligations of (or unconditionally guaranteed
by) the United States government or any agency thereof; |
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repurchase agreements secured by interest-bearing obligations of
the United States government or any agency thereof; or |
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certificates of deposit of banks having a capital surplus and
undivided profits in excess of $50,000,000. |
The trust may not acquire any asset except the net overriding
royalty interests, cash and temporary cash investments, and it
may not engage in any investment activity except investing cash
on hand.
The trustee may agree to modifications of the terms of the
conveyance of the net overriding royalty interests or to settle
disputes involving the conveyance. The trustee may not agree to
modifications or settle disputes involving the royalty part of
the conveyances if these actions would change the character of
the net overriding royalty interests in such a way that the net
overriding royalty interests become working interests or that
the trust becomes an operating business.
Liabilities of the Trust
Because the trust does not conduct an active business and the
trustee has little power to incur obligations, the trust has
only incurred liabilities for routine administrative expenses,
such as the trustees fees and accounting, engineering,
legal and other professional fees. The trustee and Burlington
Resources do not expect the trust to incur other types of
significant liabilities in the future.
Responsibility and Liability of the Trustee
The trustee is a fiduciary for the trust unit holders and is
required to act in the best interests of the trust unit holders
at all times. The trustee must exercise the same judgment and
care in supervising and managing the trusts assets as
persons of ordinary prudence, discretion and intelligence would
exercise. Under Texas law, the trustees duties to the
trust unit holders are similar to the duty of care owed by a
corporate director to the corporation and its shareholders. The
primary difference between the trustees duties and a
corporate directors duties is the absence of the legal
presumption protecting the trustees decisions from
challenge.
The trustee does not make business decisions affecting the
assets of the trust. Therefore, substantially all of the
trustees functions under the trust indenture are
ministerial in nature. Please see Description of
15
the Trust Indenture Duties and Limited Powers
of the Trustee above. The trust indenture provides that
the trustee may:
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charge for its services as trustee; |
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retain funds to pay for future expenses and deposit them in its
own account in compliance with applicable law; |
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lend funds at commercial rates to the trust to pay the
trusts expenses; and |
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seek reimbursement from the trust for its out-of-pocket expenses. |
In discharging its duties to trust unit holders, the trustee may
act in its discretion and will be liable to the trust unit
holders only for fraud or acts or omissions in bad faith. The
trustee will not be liable for any act or omission of their
agents or employees unless the trustee acted in bad faith in
their selection and retention. The trustee will be indemnified
for any liability or cost that it incurs in the administration
of the trust, except in cases of fraud or acts or omissions in
bad faith. The trustee has a lien on the assets of the trust as
security for this indemnification and compensation earned as
trustee. The trustee is entitled to indemnification from trust
assets. Trust unit holders will not be liable to the trustee for
any indemnification. Please see Description of the
Trust Units Liability of Unit Holders
above. The trustee must ensure that recourse for all contractual
liabilities of the trust are limited to the assets of the trust
and will be liable for such contractual liabilities if it fails
to do so.
Under Texas law the trustee will be liable to the trust unit
holders for damages arising from fraud, or acts or omissions in
bad faith. Texas law also permits the trust unit holders to file
actions seeking other remedies, including:
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removal of a trustee; |
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specific performance; |
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appointment of a receiver; |
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an accounting by a trustee to trust unit holders; and |
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punitive damages. |
Duration of the Trust
The trust will terminate:
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if two consecutive years pass in which trust net revenue is less
than $1,000,000 per year; |
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if the holders of at least 75% of outstanding trust units vote
in favor of termination; or |
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by operation of provisions of the trust indenture intended to
permit the trust to comply with the rule against
perpetuities. |
Compensation of the Trustee
The trustees compensation is paid out of the trusts
assets and is comprised of:
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1/20 of 1% of the first $100 million of the annual gross
revenue of the trust; |
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1/30 of 1% of the annual gross revenue of the trust in excess of
$100 million; |
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the trustees standard hourly rates for time in excess of
300 hours annually; and |
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an annual transfer agency fee based on (i) the number of
unit holder of record and (ii) the number of unit
certificates issued. |
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2004, the trustee
was paid $46,693.
16
Miscellaneous
The trustee may consult with counsel, accountants, geologists
and engineers and other parties the trustee believes to be
qualified as experts on the matters for which advice is sought.
The trustee will be protected from liability for any action it
takes in good faith reliance upon the opinion of any such expert.
MATERIAL FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSEQUENCES
This section summarizes the material federal income tax
consequences of the ownership and sale of trust units that may
be applicable to individuals who are citizens or residents of
the United States. Many aspects of federal income taxation that
may be relevant to a particular taxpayer or to certain types of
taxpayers subject to specific tax treatment are not addressed.
If a partnership holds trust units, the tax treatment of a
partner will generally depend on the status of the partner and
on the activities of the partnership. Partners of partnerships
holding trust units are urged to consult their own tax advisors.
In addition, the tax laws can and do change regularly, and any
future changes could have an adverse effect on the ownership or
sale of trust units.
This discussion is based on current provisions of the Internal
Revenue Code, existing and proposed regulations, current
administrative rulings and court decisions, all of which are
subject to changes that may or may not be retroactively applied.
All statements as to matters of United States federal income tax
law and legal conclusions with respect to those matters, but not
as to factual matters, contained in this section, unless
otherwise noted, are the opinion of Andrews Kurth LLP.
Prospective trust unit holders are urged to consult their own
tax advisors regarding the application of the United States
federal income tax laws to their particular situation as well as
any tax consequences arising under the laws of any state, local
or foreign jurisdiction.
Classification and Taxation of the Trust
The Internal Revenue Service has issued a technical advice
memorandum concluding that the trust is a grantor
trust for federal income tax purposes. This technical
advice memorandum is consistent with a legal opinion received
from tax counsel in connection with the initial distribution of
trust units. As a grantor trust, the trust is not subject to
federal income tax at the trust level. For tax purposes, the
trust unit holders are considered to own the trusts assets
as though no trust were in existence. The income of the trust is
deemed to have been received or accrued by each trust unit
holder at the time such income is received or accrued by the
trust, rather than when distributed by the trust. The trust
files an information return, reporting all items of income and
deduction which must be included in the tax returns of the trust
unit holders based on their respective accounting methods and
taxable years without regard to the accounting method and tax
year of the trust.
If the trust was determined to be a business entity at any time
after December 31, 1996 it would be taxable as a
partnership unless it elected to be taxed as a corporation. The
principal tax consequence of the trusts being treated as a
partnership would be that it would report income on the accrual
method of accounting on a calendar year basis and all trust unit
holders would report their share of income from the trust in
their tax year with which or within which the tax year of the
trust ends.
Treatment of Trust Units
A purchaser of a trust unit will be treated, for federal income
tax purposes, as directly purchasing an interest in each of the
net overriding royalty interests. A purchaser will therefore be
required to allocate the purchase price of his unit between the
net overriding royalty interests in the underlying properties in
the proportion that the fair market value of each bears to the
fair market value of the trust unit. In the case of the net
overriding royalty in the Waddell Ranch properties, a
purchasers basis will be further apportioned between oil
and gas since both have significant value and substantially
different production rates. Information regarding the
trustees determination of the relative fair market values
of the net overriding royalty interests will be furnished to
unit holders by the trustee.
17
Direct Taxation of Trust Unit Holders
Since the trust is treated as a grantor trust for federal income
tax purposes, each trust unit holder is treated as owning a
direct interest in the net overriding royalty interests, is
taxed directly on his share of trust income and is entitled to
claim his share of trust expenses, subject to applicable
limitations. Trust unit holders report their share of trust
income and expenses consistent with their method of accounting
and their tax year.
The trust, however, will allocate income and deductions to unit
holders based on record ownership at monthly record dates
established for distributions to the unit holders. It is unknown
whether the IRS will accept that allocation or will require
income and deductions of the trust to be determined and
allocated daily or require some method of daily proration, which
could result in an increase in the administrative expenses of
the trust.
The trust will make monthly distributions to unit holders of
record on each monthly record date established for that
distribution. The terms of the trust indenture seek to assure to
the extent practicable that income attributable to cash being
distributed will be reported to the unit holder who receives the
distribution, assuming that the unit holder is the owner of
record on the monthly record date established for the
distribution. In certain circumstances, however, a unit holder
will not receive the cash giving rise to that income. For
example, if the trustee establishes a reserve or borrows money
to satisfy debts and liabilities of the trust, income associated
with the cash used to establish that reserve or to repay that
loan must be reported by the unit holder, even though that cash
is not distributed.
Royalty Income and Depletion
The income of the trust consists primarily of a specified share
of the proceeds from the sale of crude oil and natural gas
produced from properties underlying the net overriding royalty
interest. The income from these net overriding royalty interests
is royalty income qualifying for an allowance for depletion.
The depletion allowance must be computed separately by each
trust unit holder for each oil and gas property. The deduction
for depletion is determined annually and is the greater of cost
depletion or, if allowable, percentage depletion. Royalty income
from production attributable to trust units owned by independent
producers qualifies for percentage depletion. In general,
percentage depletion is a statutory allowance equal to 15% of
the gross income from production from a property. An owner of a
net overriding royalty interest includes in his gross income a
percentage of gross income from the properties burdened by the
net overriding royalty interest equal to the percentage derived
from dividing his share of gross proceeds from the sale of
production from these properties by total gross proceeds from
the sale of production from these properties. Thus, gross income
attributable to gross proceeds used to pay production or other
costs taken into account in computing net profits generally are
not included in the gross income of the owner of a net
overriding royalty interest.
Percentage depletion is subject to a net income limitation of
100% of the taxable income from the property, computed without
regard to depletion deductions and specified loss carrybacks.
The depletion deduction attributable to percentage depletion for
a taxable year is limited to 65% of the taxpayers taxable
income for the year before allowance of independent producers
percentage depletion and specified loss carrybacks. Unlike cost
depletion, percentage depletion is not limited to the adjusted
tax basis of the property, although, like cost depletion, it
reduces the adjusted tax basis, but not below zero.
In computing cost depletion for each property for any year, the
allowance for the property is calculated by multiplying the
adjusted tax basis of the property at the beginning of the year
by a factor obtained by dividing the estimated quantity of
reserves at the beginning of the year into the quantity produced
and sold during the period. Cost depletion for a property cannot
exceed the adjusted tax basis of the property. Each trust unit
holder computes cost depletion using his basis in his trust
units. Information is provided to each trust unit holder
reflecting how his basis should be allocated among each property
represented by his trust units.
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Other Income and Expenses
During 2004, the only other income of the trust was interest
income earned on funds held as a reserve or pending
distribution. Other expenses of the trust include any state and
local taxes imposed on the trust and administrative expenses.
Some amount of these administrative expenses may be the type of
miscellaneous itemized deductions that are allowable only to the
extent that they total more than 2% of an individuals
adjusted gross income.
Non-Passive Activity Income and Loss
Royalty income is generally considered portfolio income and does
not offset passive losses under the passive loss rules of
Internal Revenue Code Section 469. Therefore, the income
and expenses of the trust will not be taken into account in
computing the passive activity losses and income under Internal
Revenue Code Section 469 for a trust unit holder who
acquires and holds trust units as an investment.
Sale of Trust Units
Generally, a trust unit holder will realize gain or loss on the
sale or exchange of his trust units measured by the difference
between the amount realized on the sale or exchange and his
adjusted basis for his trust units. A trust unit holders
basis in his trust units will be equal to the amount he paid for
the trust units, reduced by deductions for depletion claimed by
the trust unit holder, but not below zero. Except to the extent
of the depletion recapture amount explained below, gain or loss
on the sale of trust units by a trust unit holder who is an
individual and who is not a dealer in the trust units should be
a long-term capital gain, taxable at a maximum rate of 15%, if
the trust units have been held for more than 12 months.
Upon the sale of the trust units, a trust unit holder will be
treated as having sold his share of the net overriding royalty
interests and must treat as ordinary income his depletion
recapture amount, which is an amount equal to the lesser of the
gain on the sale or the sum of the prior depletion deductions
taken on the trust units, but not in excess of the initial basis
of the trust units.
Sale of Net Overriding Royalty Interests
The assets of the trust, including the net overriding royalty
interests, will be sold by the trustee in connection with the
termination of the trust. A sale by the trust of net overriding
royalty interests will be treated for federal income tax
purposes as a sale of net overriding royalty interests by a unit
holder. Thus, a unit holder will recognize capital gain or loss
on a sale of the net overriding royalty interests by the trust,
except that a portion of that income may be treated as ordinary
income to the extent of depletion recapture.
Unrelated Business Taxable Income
Trust unit holders that are generally exempt from tax under
Internal Revenue Code Section 501 are subject to tax on
specified types of business income defined as unrelated
business income. The income of the trust that passes
through to any tax-exempt unit holders will not be unrelated
business taxable income so long as the trust units are not
debt-financed property within the meaning of Section 514(b)
of the Internal Revenue Code. In general, a trust unit would be
debt-financed if the tax-exempt unit holder incurs debt to
acquire a trust unit or otherwise incurs or maintains a debt
that would not have been incurred or maintained if the trust
unit had not been acquired.
Backup Withholding
Distributions of trust income generally will not be subject to
backup withholding unless the trust unit holder is an individual
or other noncorporate taxpayer and fails to comply with
specified reporting procedures.
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Reports
The trustee furnishes to trust unit holders of record quarterly
and annual reports in order to permit computation of tax
liability. In particular each unit holder will be supplied with
sufficient information to permit computation of depletion.
STATE TAX CONSIDERATIONS
All revenues from the trust are from sources within Texas, which
has no individual income tax. However, the franchise tax imposed
by the state of Texas on corporations (the definition of which
includes limited liability companies) includes a computation
based on federal taxable income, which will include income from
the trust. Additionally, each purchaser who is not a resident of
Texas is urged to consult his own tax advisor regarding the
requirements for filing state income tax returns for his state
of residence.
ERISA CONSIDERATIONS
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 regulates
pension, profit-sharing and other employee benefit plans to
which it applies. ERISA also contains standards for evaluation
of fulfillment of legally prescribed fiduciary duties and
responsibilities by persons who are fiduciaries of those plans
and requirements which are applicable to transactions involving
assets of those plans. In addition, the Internal Revenue Code
provides similar requirements and standards which are applicable
to transactions involving assets of qualified plans, which
include the types of plans mentioned above, and to individual
retirement accounts (IRAs), whether or not subject
to ERISA.
A fiduciary of any such plan that is subject to ERISA should
carefully consider fiduciary standards under ERISA regarding the
plans particular circumstances before authorizing an
investment in trust units. A fiduciary should consider, among
other things:
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whether the investment satisfies the prudence requirements of
Section 404(a)(1)(B) of ERISA; |
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whether the investment satisfies the diversification
requirements of Section 404(a)(1)(C) of ERISA; and |
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whether the investment is in accordance with the documents and
instruments governing the qualified plan as required by
Section 404(a)(1)(D) of ERISA. |
A fiduciary should also consider whether an investment in trust
units might result in direct or indirect nonexempt prohibited
transactions under Section 406 of ERISA and Internal
Revenue Code Section 4975. In deciding whether an
investment involves a prohibited transaction, a fiduciary must
determine whether there are plan assets involved in the
transaction. On November 13, 1986, the Department of Labor
published final regulations concerning whether or not a
qualified plans assets would be deemed to include an
interest in the underlying assets of an entity for purposes of
the reporting, disclosure, fiduciary responsibility and
prohibited transactions restrictions provisions of ERISA and
parallel provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. These
regulations provide that the underlying assets of an entity will
not be considered plan assets if the equity
interests in the entity in which an ERISA plan and/or an IRA
invests are a publicly offered security. The trust units are
publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Fiduciaries,
however, will need to determine whether the acquisition of trust
units could result in a nonexempt prohibited transaction under
the general requirements of ERISA Section 406 and Internal
Revenue Code Section 4975.
The prohibited transaction rules are complex, and persons
involved in prohibited transactions are subject to civil
penalties and possible personal liability for breach of
fiduciary duties as a result of involvement in any violation of
prohibited transactions restrictions. For those reasons,
potential plan investors should consult with their legal counsel
to determine the consequences under ERISA and the Internal
Revenue Code of their acquisition and ownership of trust units.
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SELLING UNIT HOLDER
This prospectus covers the possible offering for resale from
time to time, in one or more transactions, of up to an aggregate
of 27,577,741 trust units by a selling unit holder, BROG.
Burlington Resources is the direct parent company of BROG, which
is the successor to Southland Royalty Company.
As of April 13, 2005, BROG beneficially owns 27,577,741
trust units, or 59.17% of the trusts issued and
outstanding units. If BROG elects to sell units under this
prospectus, a prospectus supplement will set forth, with respect
to the selling unit holder:
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the amount of trust units owned by the selling unit holder prior
to the offering; |
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the amount of trust units to be offered for the selling unit
holders account; and |
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the amount and (if one percent or more) the percentage of trust
units to be owned by the selling unit holder after completion of
the offering. |
BROG owns a portion of the fee mineral interest in the tracts
constituting the Waddell Ranch properties, which are burdened by
the trusts 75% net overriding royalty interest in crude
oil and natural gas produced and sold from such Waddell Ranch
properties. BROG is also the operator of record with respect to
those properties. To the extent it has the legal right to do so,
BROG is responsible for marketing the production from the
Waddell Ranch properties. BROG is also required to maintain
books and records sufficient to determine the amounts payable to
the trustee in respect of the Waddell Ranch overriding royalty
interest. However, nothing in the trust indenture or the
conveyance of the net overriding royalty interest in production
from the Waddell Ranch properties precludes BROG from
transferring or disposing of its interest in those properties.
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
Burlington Resources may sell the trust units offered under this
prospectus from time to time using any one or more of the
following methods:
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ordinary brokerage transactions and transactions in which the
broker-dealer solicits purchasers; |
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block trades in which the broker-dealer will attempt to sell the
trust units as agent but may position and resell a portion of
the block as principal to facilitate the transaction; |
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purchases by a broker-dealer as principal and resale by the
broker-dealer for its account; |
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an exchange distribution in accordance with the rules of the
applicable exchange; |
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privately negotiated transactions, which may include an exchange
or exchanges of units for properties; |
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settlement of short sales; |
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broker-dealer agreement with the selling unit holder to sell a
specified number of such trust units at a stipulated price per
unit; |
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to underwriters who may resell the trust units in one or more
transactions, including negotiated transactions, at a fixed
public offering price or at varying prices determined at the
time of sale; |
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a combination of any such methods of sale; and |
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any other method permitted pursuant to applicable law. |
In addition, Burlington Resources may enter into derivative
transactions with third parties, or sell securities not covered
by this prospectus to third parties in privately negotiated
transactions. If the applicable prospectus supplement indicates,
in connection with those derivatives, the third parties may sell
securities covered by this prospectus and the applicable
prospectus supplement, including in short sale transactions. If
so, the third party may use securities pledged by the Company or
borrowed from the
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Company or others to settle those sales or to close out any
related open borrowings of stock, and may use securities
received from the Company in settlement of those derivatives to
close out any related open borrowings of stock. The third party
in such sale transactions would constitute an underwriter and,
if not identified in this prospectus, will be identified in the
applicable prospectus supplement (or a post-effective amendment).
The selling unit holder may also sell trust units under
Rule 144 under the Securities Act, if available, rather
than under this prospectus.
If a sale of trust units will be through underwriters, a
prospectus supplement will name any underwriters and describe
the terms of the transaction with them, which will be
incorporated in an underwriting agreement that will be entered
into at the time of the sale. The underwriting agreement may
provide for indemnification of the underwriters by Burlington
Resources against specific liabilities, including liabilities
under the Securities Act of 1933.
One or more of the underwriters or agents for Burlington
Resources, or affiliates of those underwriters or agents, may
engage in transactions with and perform services for Burlington
Resources in the ordinary course of business.
LEGAL MATTERS
Andrews Kurth LLP, Houston, Texas, counsel for Burlington
Resources, will give legal opinions as to the validity of the
trust units being offered and as to matters described in the
section of this prospectus captioned Material Federal
Income Tax Consequences. Any additional information
regarding counsel for any underwriters will be described in a
prospectus supplement.
EXPERTS
Certain information included or incorporated by reference in
this prospectus regarding the estimated quantities of reserves
of the underlying properties and net overriding royalty
interests owned by the trust, the future net revenues from such
reserves and the present value thereof is based on estimates of
the reserves and present values prepared by or derived from
estimates prepared by, Cawley, Gillespie & Associates,
Inc., independent petroleum engineers.
Certain information incorporated by reference in this prospectus
regarding the estimated reserves of Burlington Resources is
based on or derived from estimates reviewed by Miller and Lents,
Ltd. and Sproule Associates Limited, independent oil and gas
consultants.
The financial statements of Permian Basin Royalty Trust
incorporated in this prospectus by reference for the year ended
December 31, 2004, have been audited by Deloitte &
Touche LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as
stated in their report dated March 14, 2005 and their
report dated April 4, 2005 on internal control over
financial reporting, which are incorporated herein by reference,
and have been so incorporated in reliance upon the reports of
such firm given upon their authority as experts in accounting
and auditing.
The consolidated financial statements and managements
assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over
financial reporting (which is included in Managements
Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting) of
Burlington Resources Inc. incorporated in this prospectus by
reference to the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2004 have been so incorporated in
reliance on the report of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an
independent registered public accounting firm, given on the
authority of said firm as experts in auditing and accounting.
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Permian Basin Royalty Trust
8,600,000 Trust Units
PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT
December 15, 2005
Joint Book-Running Managers
Lehman Brothers
Wachovia Securities
Citigroup
RBC Capital Markets
Credit Suisse First Boston
UBS Investment Bank
Stifel Nicolaus