Section 6922.

No prospecting permit or lease shall be made for less than 640 acres nor more than 5,760 acres and the permit or lease shall embrace a reasonably compact area. A prospecting permit or lease may be issued for a parcel less than 640 acres if the parcel is isolated from or not contiguous with other parcels of land available for a prospecting permit or lease hereunder or if the parcel would otherwise be subject to leasing rights as provided in subdivision (b) of Section 6912 by more than one surface owner. No person, association, or corporation shall take, hold, own, or control at one time, whether acquired directly from the commission under this article or otherwise, any direct or indirect interests in state geothermal leases or prospecting permits exceeding 25,600 acres. In computing acreage holdings or control, the accountable acreage of a party owning an undivided interest in a lease or prospecting permit shall be the party's proportionate part of the total lease or prospecting permit acreage. Likewise, the accountable acreage of a party owning an interest in a corporation or association shall be his proportionate part of the corporation's or association's accountable acreage, except that no person shall be charged with his pro rata share of any acreage holdings of any association or corporation unless he is the beneficial owner of more than 10 percent of the stock or other instruments of ownership or control of the association or corporation. Parties owning a royalty or other interest determined by or payable out of a percentage of production from a lease or prospecting permit will be charged with a similar percentage of the total acreage. No limitation shall apply to the number of prospecting permits or leases granted under this article. In the unitizing of acreage by two or more lessees pursuant to a cooperative or unit plan of development or operation approved by the commission, accountable acreage of a party owning an interest shall be his pro rata share and any lease or portion so committed shall continue in force so long as committed to the plan beyond the expiration date of its primary term. Any lease eliminated from any approved cooperative plan of development shall continue in effect for the original term of the lease or for two years after its elimination from the plan or the termination thereof, whichever is longer, and so long thereafter as geothermal resources are being produced or utilized in commercial quantities. A purchaser of geothermal resources pursuant to a sales contract approved by the commission shall not be deemed to have a direct or indirect interest in geothermal leases or prospecting permits.

(Amended by Stats. 1983, Ch. 617, Sec. 2.)