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Exhibit
10.33
CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION CONTAINED IN
THIS EXHIBIT HAS BEEN OMITTED FROM PUBLIC FILING PURSUANT TO A
REQUEST FOR CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT SUBMITTED TO THE U.S. SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION. THE OMITTED INFORMATION, WHICH APPEARS ON
8 PAGES OF THIS EXHIBIT AND HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED WITH THE SYMBOL
“****,” HAS BEEN FILED SEPARATELY WITH THE U.S.
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.
GEOTHERMAL LEASE
AGREEMENT
THIS GEOTHERMAL LEASE
AGREEMENT (“Lease” or “Agreement”) is made
and entered into as of the 22nd day of December, 2006,
(“Effective Date”), by and between TRUCKEE RIVER RANCH,
LLC, a Nevada limited liability company (collectively
“Lessor”), and RASER POWER SYSTEMS, LLC., a Delaware
limited liability company (“Lessee”).
RECITALS
WHEREAS, Lessor is the owner
of a fee interest in lands generally described as those covered by
the **** along with other properties in the vicinity , situated in
**** County, Nevada , described more fully on Exhibit
“A” attached hereto and incorporated herein by this
reference, containing approximately ELEVEN THOUSAND SIX HUNDRED
(11,600) surface acres of land, more or less, together with
all right, title and interest of Lessor, presently owned or
hereafter acquired, in the above described lands, and
WHEREAS Lessor may have mineral and/or
geothermal interests or rights in other property comprising
approximately THREE MILLION
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(3,000,000) acres, all more fully
described and set forth in Exhibit “B” attached hereto
and incorporated herein (the approximately 11,600 acres set forth
in Exhibit “A” and the 3,000,000 acres set forth in
Exhibit “B” are all hereinafter and collectively
referred to as the “Lands”). WHEREAS, the Parties
hereto are desirous of having the Lands developed for the
production of geothermal resources.
NOW, THEREFORE, for good and
valuable consideration, the sufficiency of which is hereby
acknowledged, the Parties hereto agree as follows:
1. GRANT OF LEASE AND
RIGHTS.
(a) For and in consideration
of the covenants, promises, warrantees, and rights granted herein,
and other good and valuable consideration set forth herein,
including without limitation, royalties, Lessee shall pay to Lessor
(i) the sum of TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS ($25,000) within
ten (10) business days of the Effective Date of this
Agreement, (ii) TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND (25,000) common
shares of restricted stock of Raser Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:RZ)
within twenty (20) business days of the Effective Date of this
Agreement, (iii) an additional TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND
(25,000) common shares of restricted stock of Raser
Technologies, Inc., if, and only if, Lessee is successful in
placing at least one operating power plant into service on the
leased Lands, and (iv) the rentals and royalties herein
provided and the covenants and agreements hereinafter contained,
and Lessor hereby grants,
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demises, leases and lets unto Lessee,
the Lands with the sole and exclusive right to Lessee to drill for,
produce, extract, take and remove therefrom all forms of thermal
energy and other associated geothermal resources to the extent such
rights are owned and/or controlled by Lessor, including:
(1) all products of geothermal processes, embracing indigenous
steam, hot water and hot brines; (2) steam and other gases,
hot water and hot brines resulting from water, gas, or other fluids
artificially introduced into subsurface formations; and
(3) heat or other associated energy found beneath the surface
of the earth; (collectively “Geothermal
Resources”).
(b) For no additional
consideration, except for the royalties set forth below, Lessee is
hereby granted the right to extract from the ground any minerals,
elements, or other substances (exclusive of oil or hydrocarbon gas
that can be separately produced) (collectively
“Substances”) to the extent such rights are owned
and/or controlled by Lessor.
(c) For no additional
consideration, Lessee is hereby granted the right to store,
utilize, process, convert, and otherwise use such Substances and
Geothermal Resources on or off the Lands and to sell the same or
any part thereof on or off the Lands during the term hereof, with
the right of entry on the Lands at all times for said purposes, and
to construct, use, maintain, erect, repair and replace thereon, and
to remove therefrom all
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roads, pipelines, telephone lines,
utility installations power lines, poles tanks, evaporation or
settling basins, extraction or processing plants, machinery,
equipment, buildings, electric power plants and equipment for
generation and transmission of electric power, and the like, for
the handling, treatment or storage of the Substances and Geothermal
Resources, and all structures and facilities relating in any way
thereto, which Lessee may desire to erect, construct, or install
and to use so much of the surface of the land as may be necessary
or reasonably convenient for the production, utilization, and
processing of Geothermal Resources and/or Substances or to the full
enjoyment of the rights granted by this Lease in carrying on
Lessee’s operations on or from the Lands to the extent such
rights are owned and/or controlled by Lessor; and Lessee shall have
the further right to erect, maintain, operate and remove a plant or
plants, structures and facilities with all necessary appurtenances
for the conversion of the Substances and Geothermal Resources into
raw materials or commercially usable substances, heat, power or
another form of energy, and for the extraction of products from
steam, brine or hot water produced from the Lands and other lands
in the vicinity of the Lands, including all rights necessary or
convenient thereto, together with rights of way for passage over,
upon and across and ingress and egress to and from the Lands for
any or all of the above mentioned purposes. Lessee shall also have
the right
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to utilize or to dispose of waste brine
and other waste products from a well or wells on the Lands into a
well or wells drilled or converted for that purpose on the Lands or
other land in the vicinity, and the right to inject and re-inject
water, brine, steam and gases from a well or wells on the Lands or
such other land for the purpose of maintaining or restoring
pressure, increasing or maintaining production, or testing in the
productive zones beneath the Lands or other land in the vicinity
thereof.
(d) In addition to the rights
granted to Lessee herein, Lessor hereby grants to Lessee the sole
and exclusive right to explore the Lands by geological, geophysical
or other methods, whether now known or hereafter
developed.
(e) Lessor shall not oppose
Lessee’s appropriation and use of surface water and
groundwater from the Lands for its operations hereunder, provided,
however, that Lessee’s appropriation of water and use thereof
shall not interfere with or impair any of Lessor’s existing
or established water rights of any nature without compensation to
Lessor for the fair appraised value (which shall be determined by
an accredited appraiser) of any impairment to an existing or
established water supply. Nothing herein shall be construed as
warranty by Lessor that any certain amount of water, or even
sufficient water for Lessee’s purposes, exists either on or
in the Lands.
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2. LEASE TERMS AND
RENTALS
(a) Subject to the other
provisions herein contained, this Lease shall have a term of FIFTY
(50) years from the Effective Date (the “Primary
Term”) and shall continue for so long thereafter as
(i) Lessee is extracting or drilling for Substances and/or
Geothermal Resources on the Lands (or lands pooled or unitized with
the Lands), with at least one string of tools, working with
reasonable diligence, allowing not more than TWENTY-FOUR
(24) months between the completion or abandonment of one
site/well and the exploration and/or commencement of operations for
the next; or (ii) Substances and Geothermal Resources are
being produced or generated from the Lands (or lands pooled or
unitized with the Lands) in commercial quantities or steps are
being taken to develop the land in such a way as to produce or
generate from the land commercial quantities; or
(iii) Remedial Operations are being continuously conducted on
the Lands (or lands pooled or unitized with the Lands), or
(iv) drilling operations, commercial production of Substances
and/or Geothermal Resources, or Remedial Operations are suspended
or excused under the provisions of this Lease; or (v) this
Lease is otherwise extended by its terms. “Remedial
Operations” means reworking, redrilling, cleaning, testing,
and the repair and replacement of wells and facilities for the
production or use of Substances and/or Geothermal Resources.
Remedial operations shall be deemed
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continuous so long as such operations do
not cease for a period of more than two (2) consecutive years.
For the purpose of this Lease, production in “commercial
quantities” shall mean production in such quantities of
Geothermal Resources and/or Substances produced, sold, or used, the
value of which, after deducting Lessor’s royalty hereunder
and Lessees’s normal operating costs will provide to Lessee a
return of such costs.(b) Lessor acknowledges and agrees that the
initial sum of TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS ($25,000.00) which is
payable upon the execution hereof, for Lands covered by the Lease,
covers the rental in full hereunder for a period of one
(1) year from the date of this Lease. Within one (1) year
from the date hereof and on or before each anniversary date
thereafter while the Lease is in force, Lessee agrees to pay to
Lessor as rentals for the next ensuing year the sum of **** per
acre for each acre of the Lands owned by Lessor in fee simple and
covered by the Lease at the time payment is made, which shall be
the approximately 11,600 acres set forth on Exhibit
“A,” as it may be amended in writing signed by both
parties; provided, however, that rentals paid to Lessor under this
subsection shall apply toward or be credited to royalties payable
or to become payable on actual production (if any) for any year
such rentals are paid. For portions of the Lands which are not
owned in fee simple by the Lessor (which includes the remaining
approximately 3,000,000 acres set forth on Exhibit
“B”), no rentals or other consideration, other than the
royalties set forth hereunder, are due to Lessor.
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(c) Lessor hereby agrees that
the $50,000 payable within ten business days of the Effective Date
of this Agreement set forth in paragraph 3(f) defined as the
“Cash Advance” (below) and the 25,000 shares of Raser
Technologies, Inc. stock provided to Lessor within twenty
(20) days of the Effective Date of this Agreement
(“Stock Advance”) shall be an advance against any
royalties payable, or to become payable, to Lessor. In other words,
the Cash Advance and the Stock Advance, the value of which shall be
determined at the time Lessor sells the stock, shall constitute the
value of the advance against royalties, whether owing in the
present or in the future. No royalty shall be paid to Lessor unless
and until the Cash Advance and the Stock Advance are recouped in
full by Lessee. Additionally, the Cash Advance and the Stock
Advance shall be applied against any rentals payable or to become
payable to Lessor.
(d) Notwithstanding the
limitation of the term of the Lease as set forth in
Section 2(b) above, the Lease shall not be terminated for lack
of production in commercial quantities after its Primary Term if
Lessee shall have shut-in any or all producing wells on the Lands
or any land unitized or pooled with the Lands as provided in
Section 12 hereof for engineering or economic reasons
sufficient in its good faith opinion to warrant such
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action; provided, however, that in the
case of such shutdowns, Lessee shall pay Lessor, on or before the
anniversary date of the Lease, the rental set forth in
Section 2(b) above and each such payment shall maintain the
Lease in force and extend the term of the Lease for an additional
year.
3.
ROYALTIES
Subject to Section 9
below, Lessee shall pay to Lessor royalty out of the proceeds
received by Lessee from the sale of global Geothermal Resources
produced from the Lands, or allocated to the Lands as provided in
Section 12, as follows:
(a) If Lessee generates
electric power from any Geothermal Resources or otherwise converts
any Geothermal Resources into electric power and sells any of said
electric power, a royalty of **** for the first five years from the
Effective Date of this Agreement and **** thereafter **** of the
gross proceeds of the sale of said electric power; less
(1) any sales, excise or
other taxes imposed on the sale of any said electric power so sold
or which are required to be included in or added to the sales price
thereof or paid by the seller; and
(2) any cost to Lessee of any
transmission to the point of sale of any of said electric power so
sold, if sold off the Lands or the Unit Area, as the case may
be;
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(3) assuming Lessee does not
use electricity generated from the geothermal plant for such
requirements, the reasonable and standard cost of any electricity
purchased by Lessee from unaffiliated third parties to operate the
geothermal well field pumps or serve other parasitic loads of the
geothermal gathering field or the generating plant.
(b) If Lessee sells any
Substances as such, a royalty of **** for the first five years from
the Effective Date of this Agreement and **** thereafter of the
gross proceeds from the sale by Lessee of the Substances;
less
(1) Any sales, excise or
other taxes imposed on the sale of any Substances sold or which are
or are required to be included in, or added to the sales price
thereof or paid by the seller, and
(2) Any cost to Lessee of any
transportation or transmission to the point of sale of any
Substances so sold, if sold off the Lands or the Unit Area, as the
case may be; and
(c) If Lessee treats or
processes or causes to be processed, any Substances and/or
Geothermal Resources for the extraction or manufacture therefrom of
any by-products, and sells any by-products, a gross royalty of ****
of the proceeds from the sale by Lessee of said by-products;
less
(1) Any sales, excise or
other taxes imposed on the sale of any by-products so sold which
are or are required to be included in or added to the sales price
thereof or paid by the seller, and
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(2) Any cost to Lessee of any
transportation to the point of sale of any of said by-products so
sold, if sold off the Lands or the Unit Area, as the case may be;
and
(d) If Lessee uses Substances
at a commercial facility other than an electric power generating
facility, a royalty of **** of the net profits produced by such
commercial operation, net profits being the proceeds generated by
Lessee, less any associated costs to Lessee including but not
limited to any plant, facility and/or operational costs and of any
transmission to the point of use if used off the Lands or the Unit
Area, as the case may be.
(e) Lessee may use, free of
royalty, Substances, Geothermal Resources, and electric power
developed from the Lands for all operations hereunder, and Lessee
shall not be required to account to Lessor for or pay royalty on
any Substances and Geothermal Resources reasonably lost or consumed
in operations hereunder.
(f) As an advance against
royalties, Lessee shall pay to Lessor an additional FIFTY THOUSAND
DOLLARS ($50,000) (“Cash Advance”) within ten
(10) business days of the Effective Date of this Agreement as
set forth and described more fully in paragraph 2(c).
(g) Subject to the
limitations in this paragraph (below), Lessee shall pay Lessor, on
or before the last day of each and
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every calendar month, the royalties
accrued and payable for the preceding calendar month
(“Payment Date”). Concurrently with making each such
royalty payment, Lessee shall deliver to Lessor a statement setting
forth the basis for the determination of the royalty then paid by
Lessee. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, Lessor agrees
that the Payment Date shall be adjusted to coincide with billing
procedures set forth in a power purchase agreement. Lessor
acknowledges that the billing procedures of such a power purchase
agreement may be monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, or based upon some
other calculation of time which will govern the date in which
royalties are due, and supersede any other such requirement, and
shall be paid to Lessor.
4.
DEPOSITORY
All payments required to be
made by Lessee to Lessor hereunder shall be paid to Lessor by
mailing or delivering a check therefore to its successors or
assigns, herein designated by Lessor as depository, Lessor hereby
granting to said depository full power and authority on behalf of
Lessor, and all those succeeding to Lessor’s rights hereunder
whether by voluntary act or operation of law, to collect and
receipt for all sums of money which may become due and payable from
Lessee hereunder. No change in the ownership of the Lands or of any
payments due Lessor hereunder shall be binding on Lessee until it
shall have been furnished adequate written evidence thereof. In the
event more
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than one person or entity shall at any
time be entitled to receive sums of money payable hereunder to
Lessor all such persons shall have the right, jointly, to designate
any other single depository to receive all payments hereunder on
their joint and several behalf, and by jointly executed and
acknowledged instrument so to advise Lessee, it being intended that
Lessee shall never be required to make payment to more than one
person or entity nor to draw more than one check for any separate
payment becoming due hereunder. Until such notice shall be
furnished to Lessee, Lessee shall continue to make all payments to
the depository last designated hereunder. The parties agree that
any and all royalty payments made to the designated depository
shall be deemed a payment to Lessor for purposes of calculating
Lessor’s royalties and shall satisfy all of Lessee’s
obligations to Lessor for the value of the royalty payment made to
the depository.
5. LESSEE’S USE OF
PRODUCTION FOR ITS OPERATION
Lessee shall be entitled,
without accountability to Lessor therefore whether by payment of
royalty or otherwise, to use in its drilling, production and
processing operations hereunder such amounts of Substances and
Geothermal Resources produced from the Lands as may be reasonably
required by Lessee for such purposes. Lessee shall be entitled,
without accounting to Lessor therefore in any manner, to flow
and/or blow wells without restriction for testing or operating
purposes.
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6. UNECONOMIC
SUBSTANCES
Nothing herein contained
shall require Lessee to produce any Substance or Geothermal
Resources contained in the by-products, products, refuse, steam,
the brines or other well output produced from wells on the Lands,
which is not economic to produce, recover, save, or market. Lessee
shall have the right, without accountability to Lessor therefore,
to waste or dispose of any such uneconomic Geothermal Resources by
such lawful manner or means as Lessee shall deem appropriate in the
circumstances.
7. SURFACE
OPERATIONS/POWER PLANT SITE RENTAL
(a) Lessee shall be
responsible for damages to growing crops caused by its operations
on the Lands; such payments are to be based upon the fair market
value of such crops at the time of such damages and in accordance
with paragraph 8(c).
( b) Lessor and Lessee
acknowledge and agree consistent with the grant set forth at
Section 1(a) that Lessee has the option to construct electric
power plants and equipment for generation and transmission of
electric power upon the Lands, provided any such power plant(s) or
plants shall be restricted to an area or areas actually or
reasonably necessary to serve and support the improvements
described herein. In the event Lessee utilizes any acreage for such
power plant construction and generation, then in such event in
addition to rents and royalties above provided Lessee shall pay
Lessor a power plant site fee in one lump sum, which fee shall be
the additional TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND (25,000)
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common shares of restricted stock of
Raser Technologies, Inc. set forth above which is only payable upon
Lessee placing at least one operating power plant into service on
the leased Lands. These additional shares shall constitute full and
adequate compensation for constructing and utilizing any number of
power plants on the Lands.
(c) Lessee agrees to use
reasonable care at all times in all of Lessee’s operations on
the Lands to prevent injury or damage to cattle, livestock,
buildings, water rights, water diversion works, ditches, tanks and
water wells or other property of the Lessor located thereon; and
Lessee agrees to repair, mitigate or pay the Lessor the fair market
value (as determined by an independent third-party appraiser) for
all damages to the surface of the Lands and to the cattle, crops,
buildings, livestock, fences, water rights, water diversions,
ditches, tanks, water, water wells and, without limitation, all
other property of the Lessor situated on the surface of the Lands
resulting from Lessee’s operations on the Lands.
(d) Lessee will seek in good
faith to prevent well products or surface materials or refuse of
any kind from entering, passing into or otherwise diluting or
degrading or polluting the waters or the water supply of Lessor or
others. Lessee shall take reasonable steps in compliance with
governing law to remove all drilling fluids, well products and
other substances, the spillage of which would contaminate or
otherwise adversely affect the
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productivity of any portion of the Lands
not actually occupied or used by Lessee or which would adversely
affect the waters or the water supply of Lessor or others to such
place or places as to reasonably insure that such contamination or
adverse effect does not occur.
(e) Prior to the commencement
of any operations on the Lands, Lessee shall inform Lessor of the
commencement of such operations (either orally, under the notice
provisions hereof, or otherwise) with the approximate date of such
commencement and the location of same; such notice to be given
within a reasonable time prior to the commencement of such
operations.
8. TITLE
WARRANTY
(a) Lessor represents and
warrants to the best of its knowledge to Lessor that it has good
and marketable fee title to the approximately 11,600 acres of land
set forth in Exhibit “A”, free and clear of all liens
and encumbrances other than rights of way and easements of record,
and hereby grants, and agrees to defend, title to the Lands,
subject to Lessee’s confirmation of the exact status of
Lessor’s interest therein, except for recorded documents
listed in Exhibit “C”, and further agrees that Lessee
at its option may pay and discharge any delinquent taxes,
mortgages, trust deeds or other delinquent liens or encumbrances
existing, levied or assessed on or against the Lands; and, in the
event Lessee shall exercise such option, Lessee shall be subrogated
to
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the rights of any holder or holders
thereof and shall have the right, in addition to other remedies
provided by law or equity, to reimburse itself by applying to the
discharge of any such mortgage, tax or other lien or encumbrances
any and all payments accruing to Lessor hereunder.
(b) With respect to the
remaining approximately 3,000,000 acres of land set forth in
Exhibit “B”, Lessor grants to Lessee the leasehold
rights set forth to the extent that Lessor maintains mineral and/or
geothermal interests or rights in such lands, if any. Lessor makes
no representations or warrantees with respect to the title to these
lands, but agrees to cooperate with Lessee in good faith to acquire
mineral and/or geothermal rights for Lessee’s full enjoyment
of the Lands in accordance with the rights granted herein. Toward
this end, Lessor agrees to cooperate in good faith with any efforts
by Lessee to obtain geothermal and/or mineral rights of any kind or
nature on any property in which Lessor maintains any rights,
including without limitation, surface rights and to cooperate with
any third party Lessee may choose to work with in fully exercising
and enjoying Lessee’s rights herein, and Lessor hereby agrees
not to protest any governmental filings, such as environmental
filings, made by Lessee as it may determine appropriate or
necessary.
9. LESSER OR AFTER
ACQUIRED INTEREST
If it should hereafter appear
that Lessor at the time of making the Lease owned a lesser interest
in the Lands than the fee simple estate therein and thereto, or
less than the entire
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interest in the Substances and/or
Geothermal Resources contained in and under the Lands, then the
royalties and the like accruing to Lessor hereunder shall be paid
to Lessor in the proportion which Lessor’s interest bears to
the entire interest in the Substances and/or Geothermal Resources
provided however that
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