La. Stat. tit. 31 § 123
Current with operative changes from the 2024 Third Special Legislative Session
Payments to the lessor for the maintenance of a mineral lease without drilling or mining operations or production or for the maintenance of a lease during the presence on the lease or any land unitized therewith of a well capable of production in paying quantities, and royalties paid to the lessor on production are rent. A mineral lessee is obligated to make timely payment of rent according to the terms of the contract or the custom of the mining industry in question if the contract is silent.
La. R.S. § 31:123