Iron Horse Energy Fund III review: big tax deductions, a very short track record
Iron Horse Energy Funds sells oil and gas drilling funds to accredited investors, built around first-year tax deductions and monthly cash flow. The firm launched in 2025 and is already on its third fund. We reviewed what can be verified.
Oil and gas working interests can offer real tax benefits, and Iron Horse files with the SEC. But the manager is about a year old, no production or return data is public, key figures shift between materials, and investors often come in through feeder funds that add another layer of fees.
What the fund is
Iron Horse Energy Fund III is the third in a series of oil and gas funds from Iron Horse Energy Funds. We could not find public offering materials or an SEC filing specific to Fund III, so this review is based on the documented structure and marketing of Funds I and II, which the firm presents as the same strategy.
The funds buy non-operated working interests: a share of the costs and revenue of oil and gas wells drilled and run by larger companies. Fund materials name operators such as Continental Resources, EOG Resources, ConocoPhillips, Devon Energy and XTO Energy, across basins including the Permian, Bakken, DJ and Powder River. Investors are promised monthly cash flow once wells produce, plus large first-year tax deductions.
Iron Horse Energy Funds is not related to Iron Horse Acquisition Corp. or Iron Horse Acquisition II Corp., blank-check companies with similar names that file reports with the SEC.
The manager
The funds are led by founder and managing partner Courtney Moeller, described in fund materials as a U.S. Navy veteran and second-generation oil and gas entrepreneur. Preqin lists Iron Horse Energy as an independent natural resources manager founded in 2025, based in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with four funds. A 2026 press release describes Iron Horse as Dallas-based. The firm calls itself veteran owned and operated, and publishes an AI-generated daily oil market podcast.
Descriptions of Moeller’s experience vary: one set of materials says $40 million or more under management and 100 or more wells drilled, while a 2025 podcast promo says over $30 million raised and 75 or more wells drilled.
SEC filings
Iron Horse Energy Fund II, Limited Partnership filed a Form D with the SEC in April 2026, listing Courtney Moeller as executive officer and director, a Cheyenne, Wyoming address and pooled investment fund interests. The filing was signed by Kyle Swafford under power of attorney from Moeller. Fund I materials state it was offered under Rule 506(c) to accredited investors and is now fully funded.
We did not find a Form D for Fund III. A new fund may not yet have filed, or may file under a different name. Investors should ask for it.
How investors get in
Iron Horse funds are often sold through outside capital raisers who form their own feeder funds. Examples include Turbine Capital, Clive Capital, OG5 Limited Partnership, and Pumps & Pumps, which describes itself as a fund-of-funds that lets investors in at $50,000 instead of a $1 million direct minimum.
A feeder fund typically charges its own fees and may take a share of profits on top of the main fund’s fees. Two investors in the same Iron Horse fund can therefore earn very different net returns depending on which feeder they used.
Before investing through any feeder, ask for the fee schedule of both the feeder and the underlying Iron Horse fund, and the combined cost.
The tax pitch
The core selling point is taxes. U.S. law lets investors in oil and gas working interests deduct intangible drilling costs in the first year, depreciate tangible drilling costs over time and take a 15% depletion allowance on production income. Working interests can also be treated as active income, so losses may offset salary and other earned income.
Iron Horse materials target an 80–90% first-year deduction for Fund I and 90% or more for Fund II, and say Fund I investors realized a 95.6% first-year K-1 benefit. These are real provisions of the tax code, and Iron Horse’s own educational materials stress that treatment depends on individual circumstances. But a large deduction is not a return: an investor who deducts 90% of their investment still needs the wells to produce enough oil to get their money back.
Claims versus records
| Claim | Source | Status | What we found |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fund I is a $100M fund across 50–100+ wells | Fund I materials | Inconsistent | Manager experience elsewhere described as $30–40M; Fund II described as a $10M fund targeting 20–30 wells |
| Return of capital in about 2 to 3 years | Fund I materials | Unproven | Fund I closed in late 2025; no production data public |
| Target 1.72x equity multiple and 22% IRR; elsewhere 2.0x–3.5x | Feeder fund materials | Varies | Targets differ by source |
| Fund I investors realized a 95.6% first-year K-1 benefit | Fund II feeder listing | Self-reported | A tax deduction, not investment performance |
| Focus on capital protection and downside protection | Iron Horse website | Overstated | Drilling investments carry commodity, dry-hole and operator risk that diversification reduces but cannot remove |
| Dallas-based firm | 2026 press release | Inconsistent | SEC filing and Preqin list Cheyenne, Wyoming |
Key risks
- Commodity prices: returns depend on oil and gas prices. Fund materials cite $35–$40 breakeven economics, but sustained low prices would delay or prevent the return of capital.
- Production risk: new wells can underperform estimates, and output declines steeply in the first years.
- No track record: the manager is about a year old, and no fund has reported production or distributions publicly.
- Working interest obligations: working interest owners generally share drilling and operating costs, which can include cost overruns. Ask whether the fund can call additional capital.
- Illiquidity: expected holds of 5 to 10 years with no market for resale.
- Layered fees: feeder funds add costs on top of the main fund’s.
- Tax law changes: the benefits depend on current law and an investor’s individual tax situation.
What investors say
We found no independent reviews of Iron Horse Energy Funds on Trustpilot, the BBB, Reddit, BiggerPockets or Invest Clearly, and no complaints. Nearly all public material is marketing from Iron Horse and the capital raisers selling its funds, including webinars, a daily podcast and press releases.
We also found no SEC, FINRA or state enforcement actions involving Iron Horse Energy Funds or Courtney Moeller.
Strengths and concerns
Strengths
- SEC filings for its funds and a 506(c) structure limited to accredited investors.
- Diversification across many wells and large, established operators.
- Genuine, well-established tax benefits for oil and gas working interests.
- Educational materials that acknowledge risks and recommend professional tax advice.
- No complaints or enforcement actions found.
Concerns
- A manager founded in 2025 already raising a third fund, with no published production or return data.
- Fund sizes, well counts, return targets and location described inconsistently.
- Marketing that emphasizes capital protection for an inherently risky asset.
- Urgency-based promotion, such as “filling up fast” messaging.
- Feeder funds that add fees and complexity.
- No public Fund III documents or SEC filing found.
Who it suits
Possible fit: high-income accredited investors with a large active tax bill, guidance from their own CPA, and money they can tie up for 5 to 10 years without needing it back.
Think carefully: anyone investing mainly for the tax deduction. The deduction only makes sense if the wells also return your capital, and that has not yet been shown for any Iron Horse fund.
Questions to ask before investing
- Has Fund III filed a Form D, and can I see its private placement memorandum?
- How much did Fund I raise, how many wells is it in, and what has it produced and distributed so far?
- What are all the fees, including any feeder fund I’m investing through?
- Can the fund require me to contribute more money for cost overruns?
- Who is the fund’s auditor, and will investors receive audited financial statements?
What would change our verdict
- Published production and distribution data for Fund I;
- audited financial statements;
- consistent, documented figures for fund sizes and the manager’s history;
- a public SEC filing and offering terms for Fund III.
What we couldn’t verify
- Any Fund III offering documents or SEC filing.
- How much Fund I actually raised.
- Production, revenue or distributions for any Iron Horse fund.
- Courtney Moeller’s prior wells and fund results.
- Fee schedules for the main funds and their feeders.
Verdict history
October 15, 2026 · Initial review · Caution (4.5)
Sources
- Iron Horse Energy Funds
- Form D, Iron Horse Energy Fund II (April 2026)
- Form D summary, Iron Horse Energy Fund II (Form D Explorer)
- Iron Horse Energy firm profile (Preqin)
- Iron Horse Energy Funds expands investor education program (press release, 2026)
- Iron Horse Energy Fund I (Clive Capital)
- Iron Horse Energy Fund II deal overview (Invest Clearly)
- Iron Horse Energy Fund offering (Turbine Capital)
- Turbine Capital portfolio
- Pumps & Pumps (feeder fund)
- Iron Horse webinar registration
- Iron Horse Energy Daily Brief, October 17, 2025 (podcast)
- Iron Horse Energy Fund II: Is it worth it? (YouTube)
About this review
Investors Verdict is independent. We have no affiliate, referral or business relationship with Iron Horse Energy Funds or any company mentioned, and no payment of any kind affects our verdicts.
This review is based on public records, court filings, news reports, company materials and published sources as of the date shown. Claims and allegations are attributed to their source. Verdicts and scores are our opinion based on the facts disclosed above, using our published review method. This review is not financial, legal or investment advice.