> How can someone sell the gas rights for just $1...Is there a tax involved when someone extracts resources? I don't know anything about South African law, but

> How can someone sell the gas rights for just $1...Is there a tax involved when someone extracts resources? I don't know anything about South African law, but in my home (Alaska) these rights are typically put up for public auction, and yes, there is a further "severance tax" levied on any production that may eventually occur. The (relatively low) auction price is just to lock in exclusivity, generally for a limited length of time. One reason that the initial leases are low is that the actual amount of gas or oil on the property is generally unknown until you get out there and start drilling holes, or at least doing some seismic mapping. If you find oil or gas and wind up producing it, you then have to pay taxes on that, but if there's nothing there, you haven't wasted your money. Not all states have a severance tax, though.