Intangible Drilling Costs

The costs of developing oil, gas, or geothermal wells are ordinarily capital expenses. You can usually recover them through depreciation or depletion. However, you can choose to deduct intangible drilling costs (IDCs) as a current business expense. These are certain drilling and development costs for wells in the United States in which you hold an operating or working interest. You can deduct only costs for drilling or preparing a well for the production of oil, gas, or geothermal steam or hot water.

You can choose to deduct only the costs of items with no salvage value. These include wages, fuel, repairs, hauling, and supplies related to drilling wells and preparing them for production. Your cost for any drilling or development work done by contractors under any form of contract is also an IDC. However, see Amounts paid to contractor that must be capitalized, next.

You can also choose to deduct the cost of drilling bore holes to determine the location and delineation of offshore hydrocarbon deposits if the shaft is capable of conducting hydrocarbons to the surface on completion. It does not matter whether there is any intent to produce hydrocarbons.

If you do not choose to deduct your IDCs as a current business expense, you can choose to deduct them over the 60-month period beginning with the month they were paid or incurred.

Amounts paid to contractor that must be capitalized. Amounts paid to a contractor must be capitalized if they are either:

• Amounts properly allocable to the cost of depreciable property, or
• Amounts paid only out of production or proceeds from production if these amounts are depletable income to the recipient.

How to make the choice. You choose to deduct IDCs as a current business expense by taking the deduction on your income tax return for the first tax year you have eligible costs. No formal statement is required. If you file Schedule C (Form 1040), enter these costs under "Other expenses."

Energy credit for costs of geothermal wells. If you capitalize the drilling and development costs of geothermal wells that you place in service during the tax year, you may be able to claim a business energy credit. See Form 3468 for more information.

Nonproductive well. If you capitalize your IDCs, you have another option if the well is nonproductive. You can deduct the IDCs of the nonproductive well as an ordinary loss. You must indicate and clearly state your choice on your tax return for the year the well is completed. Once made, the choice for oil and gas wells is binding for all later years. You can revoke your choice for a geothermal well by filing an amended return that does not claim the loss.

Costs incurred outside the United States. You cannot deduct as a current business expense all the IDCs paid or incurred for an oil, gas, or geothermal well located outside the United States. However, you can choose to include the costs in the adjusted basis of the well to figure depletion or depreciation. If you do not make this choice, you can deduct the costs over the 10-year period beginning with the tax year in which you paid or incurred them. These rules do not apply to a nonproductive well.

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