Kentucky individual well plugging bonds.
From $125.
Before you drill or take over an oil or gas well in Kentucky, the Division of Oil and Gas requires a plugging and abandonment bond on file under KRS 353.590. This is the single-well (individual) bond — pricing is 5% of the bond amount plus a $25 fee, $125 minimum, calculated for you below. Enter the amount your permit calls for.
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How much does a Kentucky individual well plugging bond cost?
5% of the bond amount plus a $25 fee, from $125. Enter your amount in the calculator for the exact price.
Three steps to bonded.
A single-well bond is straightforward — enter your amount, consent to a soft pull, and file with the Division. Here is the whole thing:
Apply online
Your operator details, the well, the bond amount your permit requires, and the effective date — plus a one-time consent to a soft credit pull.
Approved
Most are approved as soon as you apply. One soft credit pull, never a hard inquiry, and it never affects your score. If it needs a second look, one to two business days at most.
File with the Division of Oil and Gas
Pay online and receive the executed bond, ready to file with the Department for Natural Resources, Division of Oil and Gas. Wet-ink originals mailed whenever the Division insists.
What it is and who needs it.
What the well plugging bond actually guarantees
Kentucky regulates oil and gas wells through the Department for Natural Resources, Division of Oil and Gas. Under KRS 353.590, a performance bond must be on file before a well is drilled or acquired from another operator — it guarantees that the well will be properly plugged and abandoned and that the required well records are filed.
This is the single-well (individual) bond, covering one specific well rather than a blanket bond covering all of an operator’s wells. For permits issued after June 27, 2019, the department generally requires $2 of bond for every foot of true vertical well depth — so the amount scales with how deep the well goes.
If an operator abandons a well without plugging it, the Commonwealth can forfeit the bond; forfeited sums go to the state oil and gas well plugging fund and are spent plugging abandoned wells. It is not insurance for you — if the surety pays, you repay the surety. Operators who plug their wells and file records treat the bond as a permit formality.
You need this bond if you are
Claims, renewal, filing, and what sets the price.
If a claim is made
A claim comes from the party the bond protects, the obligee named on the form, when the duty the bond guarantees is not met.
The surety investigates and pays a valid claim, up to the bond amount. You then repay the surety: a surety bond is a guarantee of your performance, not insurance for you.
Renewal and term
The premium covers a one-year term from the effective date you choose.
Renew before the expiry date to keep the bond in force: the license, permit or contract it backs expects continuous coverage.
How to file it
File with the Division of Oil and Gas. Pay online and receive the executed bond, ready to file with the Department for Natural Resources, Division of Oil and Gas. Wet-ink originals mailed whenever the Division insists.
What sets the price
The premium is 5% of the bond amount plus a $25 fee, $125 minimum: the amount the obligee sets moves the price, not your business profile.
One soft credit pull, never a hard inquiry, and it never affects your score.
Where a check runs, it decides approval; the rate is the same for everyone approved.
One application, one soft pull.
These are the actual underwriting fields, including a one-time consent to a soft credit pull. Submit once and the executed bond is issued when you pay.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other Kentucky bonds.
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Well plugging bond, sorted today.
Priced at 5% of the bond amount plus a $25 fee, $125 minimum, one soft pull that never affects your score. Enter the amount your permit requires and file with the Division.