Quick answer
An easement is a nonpossessory property interest that gives its holder a right to use property for a defined use.[1] For a power line, the easement is a legal contract that lets the transmission owner build, maintain and protect the line on the landowner's land, while the landowner keeps general ownership of the land.[2] Pipelines are usually built across private lands after the pipeline company obtains an easement, the right to use a specified portion of another's property.[3] For an interstate natural gas pipeline, the company negotiates a right-of-way easement and compensation for the easement with each landowner.[4]
For wind projects, NYSERDA's guide notes that an easement runs in perpetuity unless the instrument granting it provides for a term of years.[1] A transmission easement binds the transmission owner, the landowner and any future owners of the land until the contract is dissolved or the line is removed, the right-of-way abandoned and the easement rights released.[2]
For wind projects, developers usually offer a one-time, lump-sum payment for an easement.[1] NYSERDA's guide describes the one-time, lump-sum arrangement as most common for easements and rights-of-way.[1] Pipeline easement payments are generally based on a price per foot, per acre or per rod of pipeline, or a set sum not tied to a measurement.[3] A landowner who limits an easement to one pipeline keeps the right to negotiate payment for each added line, rather than receiving just a one-time payment for an easement that could allow additional lines.[3] In Wisconsin, the Public Service Commission describes a transmission owner sometimes buying the land outright in fee simple instead of taking an easement, an arrangement it calls common for new substations but rarely used when siting transmission lines.[2] For a compressor station or other above-ground facility of an interstate natural gas project under FERC jurisdiction, FERC's landowner guide says the company will often offer to buy the property or an option to buy it.[4]
Buckhead Energy buys recurring payments from transmission line, pipeline, and battery storage easements.
For wind projects, developers usually offer one-time, lump-sum payments for rights-of-way, but for transmission line rights-of-way, leases are not uncommon.[1] A lease lets the developer spread its payments over the life of the project.[1] In Wisconsin, when an easement on land zoned or used for agricultural purposes is taken for a high-voltage transmission line or a petroleum or fuel pipeline, the condemnation offer, award or verdict must state both a lump sum and an annual payment, and the landowner chooses between them.[9] Under the Wisconsin statute, the right to annual payments for a high-voltage transmission line easement ends if the land is no longer zoned or used for agricultural purposes, and the landowner may also waive it in writing.[9]
In Texas, a battery energy storage facility agreement outside the state's wind and solar facility chapters is a lease agreement that authorizes the grantee to operate the facility on the leased property.[6] Texas's Chapter 303 rules for battery energy storage facility agreements apply only to agreements entered into on or after September 1, 2025; an earlier agreement is governed by the law in effect when it was entered into.[8] Chapter 303 covers a lease of a landowner's property to a grantee that is not an electric utility, authorizing the grantee to operate a battery energy storage facility on that leased property; the battery storage resource it defines has a capacity of one megawatt hour or more.[6] Much of the United States' utility-scale battery capacity is in the two electricity markets that cover much of California and Texas.[7]
If the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approves an interstate gas project and no agreement is reached, the company may acquire the easement under eminent domain, with a court determining compensation.[4] In Texas, after a transmission line route is approved, the company building the line negotiates with landowners to purchase easement rights, and the Public Utility Commission does not determine the amount paid.[5]
Term: for wind projects, NYSERDA's guide notes that an easement runs in perpetuity unless its instrument sets a term of years.[1]
Conditions on payment: the right to a Wisconsin annual transmission payment ends if the land is no longer zoned or used for agricultural purposes.[9]
Termination terms: an easement can instead set an objective end, such as a fixed number of years or a period without product flowing through the line.[3]
Transfers: when an interstate natural gas pipeline is converted to another use, FERC's landowner guide says easement agreements affected by the conversion may transfer to the new operator.[4]
Shared corridors: for an interstate natural gas pipeline abandoned in place, FERC's landowner guide says the company may revert the easement to the affected property owners, but in certain cases where multiple pipelines exist in the same corridor, the company may continue to hold the easements.[4]
Assignment terms: an easement can state whether the company may assign its rights and that any assignee is held to the original terms.[3]
Battery removal security: for a Texas agreement covered by Chapter 303, the battery grantee must deliver removal financial assurance no later than the earlier of the agreement's termination or the 15th anniversary of the battery operation date.[6]
What Buckhead buys depends on the deal, and Buckhead tells the seller up front which interest it is offering to buy — for example, the payments for the rest of the current lease term, a term easement, or a longer-term interest. Where an easement was paid for with a one-time, lump-sum payment made up front, the arrangement the New York wind guide says developers usually offer, it leaves nothing to sell once received: the landowner has given up the prospect of a steady income stream from it.[1] In NYSERDA's wind guide, an easement runs for a term of years when the granting instrument provides one, and otherwise in perpetuity.[1] Where an easement pays annually, as Wisconsin requires be offered when a qualifying transmission line easement on agricultural land is taken by condemnation, the right to the annual payments ends if the land is no longer zoned or used for agricultural purposes.[9] A Texas battery energy storage facility agreement is a lease, and under an agreement covered by Chapter 303 the grantee must deliver an initial estimate of the removal and recycling or disposal cost and of the facilities' salvage value on or before the 10th anniversary of the battery operation date, and an updated estimate of both at least every five years after that for the rest of the term.[6]
With a power line easement, the landowner keeps general ownership of the land.[2] Past agricultural uses can continue on a pipeline right-of-way, though buildings and large trees are usually not allowed.[4] Whether an abandoned pipeline easement reverts to the landowner depends on the terms of the easement agreement.[4]
Buckhead Energy buys recurring payments from transmission line, pipeline, and battery storage easements. Texas A&M AgriLife's pipeline easement checklist lists the compensation the company will pay, including when the payment is due, among the terms set out in the easement agreement.[3] Disputes over the wording of an easement agreement are subject to state law.[4] A licensed attorney familiar with easement negotiation issues should review all pipeline easement agreements.[3]
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Educational information only — not legal, tax, or investment advice. Consult a qualified attorney, CPA, or landman about your specific situation.
A one-time, lump-sum easement payment is made up front, and a landowner who accepts it gives up the prospect of a steady income stream from that easement.[1] Buckhead Energy buys recurring payments from transmission line, pipeline, and battery storage easements.
Payment is generally based per foot, per acre or per rod of pipeline, but may also be a set sum.[3] Landowners may also be paid for loss of certain uses of the land during and after construction and for damage to property.[4]
A pipeline easement is the right to use a specified portion of another's property, which a pipeline company usually obtains before building across private land.[3]
Yes: in wind projects, leases are not uncommon for transmission line rights-of-way even though one-time payments are usual for other rights-of-way.[1] In Wisconsin, when an easement for a qualifying high-voltage line on agricultural land is taken by condemnation, the landowner chooses between a lump sum and an annual payment.[9]
Texas A&M AgriLife's pipeline easement checklist notes that an easement agreement can set a specific, objective end, such as a set number of years or a period in which no product flows through the line.[3]
How an easement payment is described, as an easement purchase or as a payment combined with remainder damages, may have tax consequences, so it should be discussed with an accountant.[3]
Texas's rules for battery energy storage facility agreements, which are leases of a landowner's property for a battery facility, apply only to agreements entered into on or after September 1, 2025.[8] In Texas, an agreement covered by Chapter 303 must make the grantee responsible for removing the batteries, transformers and substations it installed and owns, along with foundations and buried cable to at least three feet below the surface.[6] The agreement must also require financial assurance, such as a guaranty from a parent company with a minimum investment-grade credit rating, a letter of credit or a bond, to secure that removal.[6]
[1] New York Wind Energy Guide for Local Decision Makers: Land Agreements — New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) (accessed November 3, 2026)
[2] Right-of-Ways and Easements for Electric Transmission Facilities in Wisconsin: Overview — Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (accessed November 3, 2026)
[3] Texas Pipeline Easement Negotiation Checklist — Texas A&M AgriLife Extension (accessed November 3, 2026)
[4] An Interstate Natural Gas Facility on My Land? What Do I Need to Know? — Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (accessed November 3, 2026)
[5] Landowners and Transmission Line Cases at the PUC — Public Utility Commission of Texas (accessed November 1, 2026)
[6] Texas Utilities Code, Chapter 303: Battery Energy Storage Facility Agreements — Texas Legislature (accessed November 3, 2026)
[7] Utility-scale batteries are more commonly used for price arbitrage — U.S. Energy Information Administration (accessed November 1, 2026)
[8] H.B. 3809, 89th Legislature (Regular Session), enrolled version — Texas Legislature (accessed November 3, 2026)
[9] Wisconsin Statutes 32.09(6r) — Wisconsin State Legislature (accessed November 3, 2026)
Buckhead Energy buys recurring payments from transmission line, pipeline, and battery storage easements.
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