UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 4
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP
( ) Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16.
Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instructions 1(b).
1. Name and Address of Reporting Person
HERRON, HAROLD F.
877 NORTH 8TH WEST
RIVERTON, WY 82501
USA
2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
U.S. ENERGY CORP.
USEG
3. IRS or Social Security Number of Reporting Person (Voluntary)
4. Statement for Month/Year
DECEMBER 1998
5. If Amendment, Date of Original (Month/Year)
6. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer (Check all applicable)
(X) Director (X) 10% Owner (X) Officer (give title below) ( ) Other
(specify below)
VICE PRESIDENT
7. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)
(X) Form filed by One Reporting Person
( ) Form filed by More than One Reporting Person
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
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Table I -- Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned |
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1. Title of Security |2. |3. |4.Securities Acquired (A) |5.Amount of |6.Dir |7.Nature of Indirect |
| Transaction | or Disposed of (D) | Securities |ect | Beneficial Ownership |
| | | | Beneficially |(D)or | |
| | | | | A/| | Owned at |Indir | |
| Date |Code|V| Amount | D | Price | End of Month |ect(I)| |
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<S> <C> <C> <C><C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |52,486 |D | |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |31,013 |D (a) | |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |2,895 |I (b) |By Wife |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |6,231 |I (c) |ESOP Benef. |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |64,651 |I (d) |Relatives' ESOP |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |155,811 |I (e) |ESOP Trustee |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |12,000 |I (f) |Custodial |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |125,556 |I (g) |By Plateau |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |12,612 |I (h) |By Ruby |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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$.01 PAR VALUE COMMON |N/A | | |NONE | |N/A |1,581 |I (i) |By NWG |
STOCK | | | | | | | | | |
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<CAPTION>
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Table II -- Derivative Securitites Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned |
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1.Title of Derivative |2.Con- |3. |4. |5.Number of De |6.Date Exer|7.Title and Amount |8.Price|9.Number |10.|11.Nature of|
Security |version |Transaction | rivative Secu |cisable and| of Underlying |of Deri|of Deriva |Dir|Indirect |
|or Exer | | | rities Acqui |Expiration | Securities |vative |tive |ect|Beneficial |
|cise | | | red(A) or Dis |Date(Month/| |Secu |Securities |(D)|Ownership |
|Price of| | | posed of(D) |Day/Year) | |rity |Benefi |or | |
|Deriva- | | | |Date |Expir| | |ficially |Ind| |
|tive | | | | A/|Exer-|ation| Title and Number | |Owned at |ire| |
|Secu- | | | | | D |cisa-|Date | of Shares | |End of |ct | |
|rity |Date |Code|V| Amount | |ble | | | |Month |(I)| |
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<S> <C> <C> <C> <C><C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Stock Option (Right t|$2.90/SH|N/A | | | | |04/15|04/14|COMMON STOCK|11,000 |N/A |11,000 |D | |
o Buy) | | | | | | |/92 |/02 | | | | | | |
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Stock Option (Right t|$2.875/S|12/04|A | |34,782 |A |12/04|09/25|COMMON STOCK|34,782 |N/A |34,782 |D | |
o Buy) (j) |H |/98 | | | | |/98 |/08 | | | | | | |
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Stock Option (Right t|$2.00/SH|12/04|A | |40,218 |A |12/04|09/25|COMMON STOCK|40,218 |N/A |40,218 |D | |
o Buy) (j) | |/98 | | | | |/98 |/08 | | | | | | |
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| | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
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</TABLE>
Explanation of Responses:
a) Includes 18,900 shares and 12,113 subject to forfeiture. The 18,900
shares, issued under the USEG
Restricted Stock Bonus Plan, are deemed "earned out" by the Reorting Person:
(i) if he is continuously employed
by USEG until he retires; (ii) if he becomes disabled; (iii) upon his death, or
(iv) if the shares are claimed within
three years following the occurrence of (i), (ii) or (iii). The 12,113 shares,
issued under the 1996 Stock Award
program, vest at the rate of 20% each year over a five year period and are
subject to the forfeiture conditions
noted previously. The treasurer of USEG holds the shares in trust for the
benefit of the Reporting Person, while
the non-employee directors of USEG exercise shared voting and dispositive
rights over all 31,013 shares. The
shares do not come under the control of the Reporting Person until termination
of employment. The total number of
shares is presently reported; distributions to the Reporting Person will not be
separately reported. The
acquisitions of the shares by the Reporting Person from both the Bonus Plan and
the Award Program are exempt
under Rule
16-b3.
b) Consists of shares held directly by the Reporting Person's
wife.
c) Consists of shares held in the U.S. Energy Corp. Employee Stock Ownership
Plan ( the "ESOP") in an account
established for the benefit of the Reporting
Person.
d) Consists of shares held in ESOP accounts established to benefit members of
the Reporting Person's
"immediate family", as that term is defined in Rule 16 (a-1(e), in accordance
with Rule 16a-8(b)(2).
e) Consists of shares held in the ESOP which are not allocated to accounts
established for the benefit of
specific plan participants. The Reporting Person, as an ESOP Trustee,
exercises the voting powers with respect
to such unallocated
shares.
f) Consists of shares indirectly held by the Reporting Person through his
minor children. The Reporting Person is
Custodian over 3,000 shares, while his brother-in-law, Mark J. Larsen, is
Custodian over 9,000 shares for the
children under the Wyoming Uniform Transfers to Minors
Act.
g) Consists of shares held by Plateau Resources Limited ("Plateau"), a
wholly-owned subsidiary of USEG. The
Reporting Person is an officer and director of both USEG and Plateau. The
Reporting Person is not a controlling
shareholder of Plateau, and therefore the Reporting Person does not have a
pecuniary interest in the USEG
shares held by Plateau, under Rule
16a-1(a)(2)(iii).
h) Consists of shares held by Ruby Mining Company ("Ruby") a subsidiary of
USEG. The Reporting Person is an
officer and director of both USEG and Ruby. The Reporting Person is not a
controlling shareholder of Ruby, and
therefore the Reporting Person does not have a pecuniary interest in the USEG
shares held by Ruby, under Rule
16a-1(a)(2)(iii).
i) Consists of shares held by Northwest Gold, Inc. ("NWG"), a subsidiary of
USEG. The Reporting Person is an
officer and director of both USEG and NWG. The Reporting Person is not a
controlling shareholder of NWG, and
therefore the Reporting Person does not have a pecuniary interest in the USEG
shares held by NWG, under Rule
16a-1(a)(2)(iii).
j) Issuance of qualified (34,782) and non-qualified (40,218) stock options.
Issue date for the optons is the date
of shareholder appproval of amendments to the issuer's Stock Option Plan
(December 4, 1998).
NOTE: Pursuant to SEC Rule 16a-1(a)(2), information on Plateau, Ruby and NWG
is not required, however,
Registrant has
undertaken
comprehensive disclosure and reports shares held by Plateau, NWG
and Ruby as indirectly owned by
the Reporting
Person.
The Reporting Person disclaims beneficial and pecuniary interest
in the shares reported under footnotes
b, d, e, f, g, h and
i.
DATE
January 7, 1999
