Investing: KOG

Yahoo!Finance: KOG
3Q10 Earnings Report
1Q10 Earnings Report

NEWS

July 10, 2011: KOG -- one of six oil and gas companies with best price appreciation (publicly traded shares). 


April 25, 2011: Motley Fool on KOG.

February 12, 2011:  Michael Filloon/SeekingAlpha on KOG (February 11, 2011).

January 5, 2011: KOG bows says it partners with XOM. I was originally concerned with KOG due to need for capital to finance it's drilling program. With XOM as a partner, and KOG located in some of the best Bakken/Three Forks, there is no question any more that KOG is a great holding in the Williston Basin. One could put this among the top five drillers in North Dakota and a great stock to accumulate.

January 4, 2011: Investopedia on KOG.

November 5, 2010: Comments on KOG's 3Q10 earnings.

October 19, 2010: KOG increases acreage base by 25%! Huge deal. Worth $1.6 billion? Paid $88 million in cash.

May 4, 2010: Three wells on one pad!

• 18987, KOG, Two Shields Butte 14-21-16-2H, SESW 21-149N-92W
• 18988, KOG, Two Shields Butte 14-21-33-15H, SESW 21-149N-92W
• 18989, KOG, Two Shields Butte 14-21-33-16H3, SESW 21-149N-92W

April 24, 2010: When I first posted my commentary regarding KOG, I asked the question: where does KOG get the cash it needs to pursue its very aggressive CAPEX program. Recent events may have shed some light on the situation. It started with this bit of sleuthing. First Arrow Midstream announces a joint venture with XTO and the Three Affiliated Tribes for a new pipeline in the Mandaree area, where there are no XTO wells. Review of KOG's most recent corporate presentation reveals that KOG has partnered with XTO (50/50) in KOG's Two Shields Butte and Saddle Butte prospects. Ka-boom.

February 21, 2010: Hypothetical investment results with dollar-cost averaging since KOG announced the results of its first wells back in 2007.

February 16, 2010: KOG provides interim update on operations, including announcement that recent short lateral had an IP of 1,419. The report also notes that a) KOG has some 3-well pads; and, b) they are moving to long laterals (like everyone else, it seems).

From the report: "Kodiak focuses its well-performance analysis on longer-term production rates and also looks to ensure that it invests its capital for the most efficient development of our reserves.  Based upon our production data, the recovery rates per-foot of horizontal lateral appear to be greater in the shorter laterals; however our analysis indicates that we achieve a stronger rate of return with the longer laterals as additional reserves are obtained with marginal incremental investment.  Therefore our 2010 development program will be geared to longer laterals as opposed to the shorter laterals."

December 18, 2009:  KOG announces $60 million 2010 CAPEX program ($21 million CAPEX in 2009). KOG will take delivery of a second rig in February 2010 for the Bakken. KOG commits to 12 gross (9.5 net) wells in 2010; this compares to 9 wells in 2009.

COMMENTARY

This is a most interesting play. It's one of the smaller companies in the Bakken by market capitalization.

KOG was one of the first to be active in the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. The reservation has part of the prolific Parshall oil field as well as the developing Van Hook and Big Bend fields.

It appears one can divide the FBIR in quarters. I don't know much about the SW or the SE quarter yet. The NE quarter is "owned" by EOG. The rest of the productive FBIR is split among several companies notably Slawson and KOG. (I am not aware that Slawson is publicly traded; I could be wrong. Slawson partners with several other producers, most notably NOG.)

KOG has a number of wells on the FBIR, and there's a lot of discussion on the message boards about how well KOG might do. I can't argue. KOG might do quite well.

In the summer of 2009, I was negative to neutral on KOG; with KOG adding a second rig in the Bakken, one can argue KOG is stepping into the "big leagues" in the Bakken -- maybe not quite there but heading in that direction.

KOG share price has lagged NOG significantly (January, 2010). Earnings soon to be reported. Although KOG states it has $50 million in assets, most of that is in property plant and equipment ($35 million); it has only $1.75 million cash on hand (according to Yahoo!Financial and KOG's current presentation, based on 3rd quarter data). And yet KOG says it has committed to a $60 million 2010 CAPEX program: where do they get that cash, $60 million? They state, in their current presentation, that in early 2010 they will have established necessary credit lines. "Kodiak expects to substantially fund the budget primarily from cash on hand ($1.75 million vs $60 million CAPEX), cash flow from operations (negative cash flow?), and potential borrowings under a new reserve-based revolving line of credit that it expects to put into place in early 2010." To me, it looks like they will need to a) borrow significantly, b) issue more stock, or c) hit some huge wells. Dunn County, where most of their activity is, is a good location, but it's not the Parshall oil field. KOG has been as high as $6/share; around $1 last March, 2009, and now back up to $2.50 (January, 2010). Speculative to say the least.

Updated: April 25, 2011.

Investing: BR (COP)

Locator: 10001COP

 

Miscellaneous

Facts about the COP spin-off of PSX, April 30, 2012. First day of trading for PSX, May 1, 2012.

 
NEWS

May 26, 2023: to acquire stake in Canadian oil sands.

September 22, 2022: betting the farm? $23 billion for Concho Resources and Shell assets in the Permian. 

October 9, 2019: huge dividend increase; huge plans to return cash to shareholders. Dividend increase of 38% announced.

February 1, 2019: 4Q18 earnings call.

October 25, 2018: COP: increases dividend 7%. After awhile, these dividend increases are significant. Of the majors, COP is betting big on shale oil. One of every four bbls of oil that COP produces is shale oil. In the Bakken, COP is represented by BR.

July 30, 2015: 2Q15 earnings call, one mention of the Bakken -- We're now running 13 rigs, with six in the Eagle Ford, four in the Bakken (agrees with this post) and three in the Permian. That's down from 32 rigs at the end of 2014 and we believe this is the right pace of activity in this environment. We'll reassess these levels later in the year, taking into consideration market conditions, pilot test information and the price outlook.

April 8, 2015: An excerpt from COP's analysts' day transcript regarding the Bakken was posted here.

June 11, 2014: analyst raises guidance, target moved from $82 to $90/share

January 14, 2014: Five reasons to hold COP for the long haul.

July 23, 2013: PSX IPO -- raging success: hugely bullish for PSX shareholders (read "Disclaimer" here). At SeekingAlpha:

Phillips 66 Partners (PSXP) began trading today on the NYSE and by all indications the IPO was a rousing success. The MLP opened at $28.98, well above the initial pricing of $23. An AP report this morning said PSXP raised $377.8 million from its initial public offering of stock. These proceeds were above expectations and is bullish for Phillips 66 (PSX).

July 12, 2013: for investors only -- Motley Fool asks the question: which major oil company returns the most cash to shareholders? Worth a read. Spoiler: XOM. Along that line there is a nice article on SeekingAlpha on COP's dividend: this has been quite a story for long-term COP investors.

June 17, 2013: folks are starting to get bullish on COP. A talking head on CNBC made COP his one stock pick of the day. Motley Fool provides three reasons to consider COP a) natural gas; b) dividend/stock buyback; and, c) stateside expansion.

April 1, 2013: how PSX shareholders will benefit from MLP, SeekingAlpha.

November 25, 2012: COP to sells its minority interest in the Caspian Sea.

May 8, 2012: COP announces it will sell all Nigerian (all African?) assets. 

April 24, 2012: Facts about the COP spin-off of PSX, April 30, 2012. First day of trading for PSX, May 1, 2012.

April 9, 2012: COP issues interim 1Q12 update.

April 4, 2012: COP - PSX spin-off effective April 16, 2012; one share PSX for every two shares COP.

March 6, 2012: parent company (COP) to sell $10 billion in assets in 2012. The company's spin-off, Phillips 66, the downstream component, will begin trading "when-issued on April 12, 2012.

October 7, 2011: COP to split into two companies. 

April 19, 2011: Investopedia on COP.

Conoco Phillips is making a large bet on the development of various oil sands projects in Canada over the next decade as the company looks to grow production. The company estimates that production from these projects will quadruple by the end of this decade.

Conoco Phillips has approximately one million acres of properties in Alberta with bitumen deposits and has interests in many different oil sands projects. The company reported just over 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) per day of production in 2010. 

HISTORY 

COP spun off PSX on May 1, 2012. 

BR is a subsidiary of COP.

The company history of BR.

Meridian Oil Company, who is credited with pioneering horizontal drilling, was a subsidiary of Burlington Resources at the time.

Investing: Fidelity (MDU)

Fidelity is a subsidiary of MDU.

MDU Presentation, April 2011, IPAA Conference

MDU Presentation, October 2010

MDU: 2Q, 2010, Earnings Conference Call Transcript, August 3, 2010

• Accompanying Slides

NEWS

April 6, 2010: SeekingAlpha -- revisiting the pros and cons of splitting up MDU.

September 25, 2010: Time to buy MDU? Yup.

June 22, 2010: MDU and Otter Tail will get paid for power plant built, never used. 

April 30, 2010: first quarter, 2010, results.

February 4, 2010: this has nothing to do with Fidelity, but it does have to do with MDU, its parent company. This is a reminder that MDU is in the gravel business, also.

February 1, 2010: 2009 earnings down from year before (a 32%% decline) and guidance for further decrease in 2010. MDU did report record cash flow and did increase dividend.

January 18, 2010: Although the coal-powered Big Stone II power plant won't be built, MDU reserved the rights to the transmission lines that would have carried this electricity into Minnesota. Last week, T. Boone Pickens, who has given up on his 667-turbine wind farm in Texas due to transmission line problems, stated he will move his 667 turbines "to the north." The article stated "the north" meant Canada and Minnesota, but North Dakota would obviously become part of the discussions.

November 2, 2009: Coal-fired, 500-600 MW power plant at Milbank, SD, Big Stone II, won't be built. With all the uncertainty coming out of Washington this should be good news for MDU investors, but bad news for Minnesota utility customers who will be paying higher bills in the future. Coal is still the least expensive source of energy; cap and trade will be managed with "in-house" subsidiaries.

October 30, 2009: Drill down into their numbers. MDU looks really good following their 3rd quarter earnings report.  [Update: well, maybe not so good. A 32% decline in earnings in 4Q, 2009. Posted February 4, 2010.]

Investing: WLL

Finance!Yahoo: WLL.
Whiting USA Trust 1.


Corporate Presentations

Excellent presentations, especially the several Q&A slides at the end of most of their corporate presentations. 

4Q10: Earnings, February 25, 2011
3Q10: Earnings, October 27, 2010
Q2 2010: Earnings, July 28, 2010
Q1 2010: Financial and Operating Results, April 28, 2010.

Motley Fools CAPS: outperform. November 2, 2009.

November, 2009: Corporate presentation.

Note slide 21 how far east in North Dakota the oil might extend. Also note that WLL's EUR/well is 850K bbls; compares almost identically with EOG's 900K bbls EUR for their Bakken Core wells.

3rd quarter report: Eye watering report!

"We recently completed three prolific oil wells in the Sanish field. On October 23, 2009, Whiting posted a new record initial production rate for a Bakken well. The Maki 11-27H (permit 17612) flowed 4,345 barrels of oil and 2.5 million cubic feet (MMcf) of gas (4,761 BOE) per day during a 24-hour test of the Middle Bakken."

The Maki is located in an incredibly good township (154-91). Go to this site and scroll down to that township and see the monster wells.

3rd quarter earnings, 2009: beats analysts' estimate (59 cents vs 28 cents estimated); raised production; and predicts increased production.

Some time ago Whiting sold much of its acreage to its oil royalty trust; that action no longer affects WLL equity performance. The Whiting oil royalty trust ticker symbol is WHX and currently (October, 2009) pays over 14%.

NEWS

February 1, 2011: SeekingAlpha on WLL -- positive review.

January 25, 2011: SeekingAlpha on dramatic downtown for WHX based on "sell" recommendations.

January 4, 2011: SeekingAlpha on WLL. WLL is definitely one of the top five investing opportunities in the Williston Basin. Among the drillers I find CLR, WLL, and KOG very exciting. NOG is in the same group (exciting) but it has a unique business model unlike the three just mentioned. I continue to watch BEXP -- if I exhausted my interest in the other four, I would start accumulating BEXP.

October 17, 2010: WLL announces a new revolving credit facility with access to $1.1 billion.

August 17, 2010: zmansenergybrain.com -- WHX, 2Q,2010.

August 6, 2010: WHX quarterly distribution announced -- 74 cents. Can you say "ka-ching"?

July 12, 2010: Talk of deals in the Bakken.



Updated: periodically.

Investing: BEXP

Yahoo!Finance: BEXP.
Corporate presentation; most recent can always be found here at top of left sidebar.


4Q10, earnings press release, Feb 24, 2010; earnings quadruple; annual report
3Q10, earnings press release, Nov 1, 2010
2Q, 2010, earnings transcript. August 5, 2010 -- announces super-fracks (38-stage fracks).
2Q 2010, results. August 5, 2010.
First quarter report, 2010.
Annual report, 2009. 

BEXP presentation at the BOA-ML Credit Conference, December 3, 2009.

Slide #23 of the October/November, 2009, corporate presentation is a beautiful photograph of the Olson and the Brad Olson "sister" wells just west of Williston. These are photographs even a tree-hugger might enjoy. [No trees in North Dakota. No polar bears, either.] Posted November 30, 2009.

*******

I have mixed thoughts on BEXP. Back in 2007 when the Bakken in North Dakota was first hitting the news, BEXP was one of the best.

Back in the summer of 2009 I wrote: I have some anxiety regarding BEXP. I have heard a range of stories regarding BEXP, everything from "the next best thing" to "it's in financial trouble." [Update: see earnings release, below. Rumors that they were "in financial trouble" probably wasn't too far off. This was also during a time when credit was tough -- banks were not loaning money -- and that's why they partnered with USEG.]

BEXP partnered with USEG and has had at least two secondary share offerings to raise more cash. Their press releases said the recent share offerings was done to expedite / accelerate their drilling program. That may be true. It is also true, they may have had to do that to save their incredibly good leases.

It's my impression that EOG, CLR, BEXP, and WLL have the best acreage in the North Dakota Bakken.

Fast forward to autumn, 2010: BEXP is looking pretty good, especially for those willing to take the risk and buy in early. 

*******

May 23, 2011: The "darling" of the Bakken.

February 15, 2011: Wildcatting? A shout-out to BEXP.

January 28, 2011: Another secondary offering?

January 13, 2011: Significant net asset value enhancement event for BEXP?

January 10, 2011: Investopedia on BEXP.

January 5, 2011: Current corporate presentation and comments. Importance of not double counting.

January 4, 2011: Investopedia on BEXP.

October 26, 2010: Seeking Alpha recommendation -- BEXP.

September 27, 2010: BEXP announces update on tender offer and $300 million senior note offering.

September 7, 2010: Nice analysis of BEXP by Motley Fools -- "Is BEXP a Short Candidate?"

July 12, 2010: Talk of deals in the Bakken.

April 9, 2010: Yet another stock offering, and it is over-subscribed. Original SEC filing to sell 13 million shares; that was increased to 14 million shares. Over-subscribed, and ended up selling 16 million shares.

February 12, 2010: Could BEXP be a takeover target?

February 3, 2010: Can BEXP go higher?

December 11, 2009: Update on the US Energy (USEG) share offering. Did share offering not go well? It is being reported that USEG now offering shares at slight discount.

December 1, 2009: BEXP's partner in the Williston area, US Energy (USEG) raised more cash through a new share offering.

November 6, 2009: 3rd quarter earnings, press release. Our reported net income for the third quarter 2009 was $0.5 million ($0.01 per diluted share), versus $15.3 million ($0.33 per diluted share) for the same period last year. (Comment: it's hard to earn less than a penny a share, but at least it's not a loss. It's amazing how one can go from 33 cents/share to a penny a share in earnings.)

October 25, 2009: BEXP's September 22, 2009, Analyst/Investor Presentation

On September 22, 2009, provided a special presentation for analysts and investors in Williston, and a field trip to the Olson well and the Brad Olson well west of Williston.

Investing: CLR

Yahoo!Finance: CLR.


All earnings now posted at "Earnings Central" posted on the sidebar at the right.

3Q10 Earnings, Nov 3, 2010
2Q10, Earnings Transcript, August 6, 2010
2Q10, Earnings Release, August 4, 2010
1Q10 Earnings
Annual Report (SEC), 10-K, 2009
4Q, 2009 Earnings Conference Call Transcript
3Q, 2009 Earnings Conference Call Transcript 

*****

March 25, 2011: Public offering complete; raised $600 million; sold about 10 million shares. Not all of the over-allotment was sold. I don't know much about "over-allotments" but it is interesting that not all shares offered were sold.

March 1, 2011: To sell 11.5 million shares in new offering to raise cash; represents about 6.3% of current outstanding shares.

January 25, 2011: Zacks recommends CLR.

January, 5, 2010: Presentation, current financial picture. Total cash cost in the Bakken -- $16.71/bbl.

November 4, 2010: $0.23 vs $0.21 3Q09. Would have been $0.41 without one-time charge.

October 28, 2010: Investopedia recommendation. The article says CLR is putting 8 wells on one pad on a 1280-acre spacing unit.  I think that's incorrect. I think it's four wells on one pad for one 1280-acre unit, and four wells on another pad for another 1280-acre unit. The two pads can abut and result in one huge pad. But it is eight wells on two 1280-acre units. This is an important distinction because WLL is truly putting in as many as seven wells in one 1280-acre unit.

October 25, 2010: Investopedia --- CLR says 25 to to 65 percent return on investment with oil at $60 to $100. 

September 10, 2010: CLR announces a 21 percent increase in proved reserves, mostly as a result of drilling in the Bakken. The  additional 53 million barrels of oil at $ 20 per barrel of oil in the ground is $1,060,000,000;  divided by 170 million shares of stock  = $ 6.23 per share.

August 6, 2010, 2Q, 2010 earnings report, data points:

• 7-fold increase in earnings compared to same quarter last year
• Expects 2010 production expense to be lower: $6.50 - $7.00 (vs $7.75 - $8.25)

May 5, 2010, 1Q 2010 earnings report, data points:

• Beats estimates by 8 cents
• "Handily" beats Street -- Reuters
• Production up 4%
• Net income 43 cents vs 16 cents one year ago
• Total oil and gas sales rose 134%

February 25, 2010, 2009 earnings report, data points:

2009 production: 13% higher than 2008
Plans to have six (6) Eco-pads in 2010
One Eco-pad currently drilling in the Bakken
2009 reserves are 62% higher than 2008
The Bakken -- largest portion of CLR's reserves; 41%
Average daily production: 37k boepd vs 36k one year earlier
Production expense: $6.71/bbl vs $7.83 a year earlier

December 2, 2009:  T. Boone Pickens says CLR is one of his two top energy choices.

November 23, 2009: CLR has agreement to sell 5,000 bopd at fixed price of $80.50/bbl, January, 2010, through June, 2010. See CLR's homepage.

November 19, 2009: see the outstanding Harold Hamm presentation link at Bakken: CLR.

August 6, 2009: fascinating update.

*****

See my comments on outstanding 3rd quarter, 2009, earnings.

**** GENERAL COMMENTS *****

Continental Resources remains my personal favorite. The CEO, Harold Hamm, has been one of the "faces" of the Bakken.

When I first started researching the oil exploration and production companies in 2007, CLR and EOG were at the top of the list. I did not invest in EOG (that was a big mistake) but I did invest in CLR (no regrets).

CLR has some great wells. In addition, Harold Hamm is a very innovative thinker. Although others had suggested it, he was the first to test the theory that the Bakken and the Three Forks Sanish are two separate (non-communicating) formations.

Hamm has worked with the state and he has approval for ECO-pads: up to eight wells on one pad with four laterals in each of two separate formations, the Bakken and the TFS.

It appears that CLR will attempt a four-well ECO-pad in the near future. It is estimated that there should be a savings of about 10% per well drilled on an ECO-pad. Savings are found by not having to build separate pads, separate roads to different pads, and transporting the rig long distances.

Investing: EOG

Yahoo!Finance: EOG.

4Q10, Earnings, February 18, 2011
3Q10, Earnings Report, Nov 4, 2010
2Q, 2010, Earning Report. August 5, 2010
1Q, 2010 Results, May 3, 2010
Annual report, 2009, Feb 25, 2010
Full year, 2009, Conference Call, Seeking Alpha, Feb 10, 2010
Full year, 2009, Earnings Report; Raises Dividend, Feb 9, 2010
3rd Quarter Earnings Conference Call Transcript
EOG looking at three (3) wells per pad.

News

March 7, 2011: EOG completes public share offering; raises $1.39 billion; priced at $105.50/share. 


February 18, 2011: The reason why EOG's share price is soaring. 


August 5, 2010: 2Q, 2010 earnings -- 24 cents income vs 7 cents loss one year ago. The consensus was for 25 cents. Again, the most interesting thing is that for a company with worldwide interests, the report starts out with comments on the Bakken where it has been most successful.  

"For the first time in EOG's history, during the second quarter total revenues generated from crude oil, condensate and natural gas liquids production exceeded those from natural gas," Mark Papa, EOG's Chief Executive Officer, said in a statement.

May 3, 2010: For a company operating nationwide (worldwide?), this is a most interesting way to start off their earnings call May 3, 2010, regarding operations: "Driven primarily by production growth from its North Dakota Bakken and Fort Worth Basin Barnett Combo crude oil operations, EOG reported a 25 percent increase in crude oil production compared to the first quarter 2009." Having said that, I was surprised that EOG missed estimates: one of the very few to have missed estimates.

Original Post

In my opinion, EOG has had the most success in the Bakken. I believe Burlington Resources produces more oil than EOG in North Dakota but EOG may be more profitable. EOG "owns" the Parshall oil field, currently what appears to be the most productive oil field in the Williston Basin.

Of all the oil exploration and production companies currently in the Bakken, this is probably the first company that Bakken "newbies" should consider.

EOG has 82 wells on the confidential list (December, 2009).

There is an interesting discussion going on about EOG. I may have this wrong; I heard it third- or fourth-hand. It has been suggested that EOG drills their wells but then waits until it suits them to do the fracture stimulation, sometimes waiting months. Most companies fracture their wells within days of completing their drilling.

If a company does not need the cash flow, it makes sense to hold off fracturing until the price of oil rises. If EOG has many wells they did not fracture when oil was priced at $60 and now is getting ready to fracture these wells when the trend has been toward $80 oil, it certainly makes for an interesting proposition.

My Analysis of EOG, November 14, 2009

Sources:

Yahoo!Finance: EOG, Key Statistics, Income Statements
Historical prices for natural gas.
Historical prices of crude oil.

I am having great difficulty deciding whether to buy EOG (2009/2010).

I don't follow the natural gas market as well as the crude oil market, so that puts me at a disadvantage when it comes to EOG whose fortunes may be as much on the price of natural gas as the price of oil.

I definitely think, that all things being equal, the price of natural gas will affect EOG's earnings the most.

Having said that, here are the US natural gas wellhead prices (EIA data):

Jun 10:  $4.25
Nov 09: $3.42 (winter is coming)
Aug 09: $3.14 (trend is down)
Jun 09: $3.45
Jan 09: $5.15
Aug 09: $3.14
Jan 09: $5.15
Aug 08: $8.32
Jun 08: $10.82
Jan 2008: $7.00
All of 2007: $5.50 - $7.00
All of 2006: around $6.00
All of 2005: around $6.00 (though a spike to $10.00 at end of calendar year)

Now look at the income on a yearly basis for EOG (calendar year ending Dec 31):

2006: $3.2 billion
2007: $4.2 billion
2008: $7.1 billion (corresponds with the $7.00 - $10.00 for natural gas (above)

Now look at the last few quarters for EOG (top line income)

Dec 08: $1.7 billion
Mar 09: $1.2 billion
Jun 09: $0.9 billion
Sep 09: $1.0 billion

Comment:

It looks like the calendar year income for EOG will end about $4.5 billion (same as 2007; well below 2008).  [Update: according to press release, EOG's calendar year income ended up at $4.79 billion -- so my estimate wasn't too far off the mark. Smile.]

It looks like EOG's quarterly income has stabilized, just as natural gas price has pretty much stabilized.

I follow oil more closely, and it appears that oil will either be in this trading range for quite some time ($72 - $80) with a greater downside risk than upside move. Thus, all things being equal, EOG's income should not move a whole lot in the next two quarters (unless there are spikes in natural gas price; even small moves in oil price might not make that much difference).

EOG's third quarter income did not change that much from the previous quarter despite a significant increase in the price of oil during the third quarter. And, it appears the price of oil in the fourth quarter (the current quarter) is not going to be a whole lot different than the third quarter -- perhaps up in "raw" dollars but not that much on a percentage basis.

I don't follow natural gas, so I don't know, but it's my understanding that natural gas wells don't last that long, and it almost seems supply/demand for natural gas affects the drilling program in real time, as opposed to oil, where a very good well will continue to generate income for a long time with minimal additional cost. Maybe someone can help me out on that.

With that assumption, that EOG can crank up / crank down their natural gas drilling program more quickly, then the income of EOG is affected by a) overall oil program (price of oil as well as production long term); and b) price of natural gas (production being less of an issue).

Let's say the price of oil holds steady. EOG has 79 wells on the confidential list in North Dakota ("the Bakken"). EOG currently has six rigs in North Dakota and says they will expand to 13 or 14 in 2010 and has said they will expand capital expenditures in North Dakota significantly in 2010. EOG has probably the best acreage in "the Bakken."

So, even if oil stays in current trading range or drops a bit, the oil production for EOG will be very significant.

The problem is natural gas. I didn't do the income comparison to price of crude oil above but unlike natural gas which plummeted at the end of 2008, natural gas has not yet turned around. Oil has returned back to the prices of 2006/2007 and has been in an upward trend. Natural gas, on the other hand is back at the 2003 prices and not all that far from the historical prices since 1980, and is still in a downward trend. Taking inflation into account, the price of natural gas has to be cheaper than it was 1980 - 2000.

So, I don't know.  All those confidential wells in "the Bakken," doubling the number of rigs in 2010, and with oil in its current trading range, it gets me interested in EOG. [Also, just after posting this long note, a story that EOG's estimate of ultimate recovery in the Texas Barnett Combo might increase by 80% was posted. In this story, EOG estimates that EUR is 280,000 boe. For comparison's sake, EOG estimated back in 2007 that they could ultimately recover 750,000 boe from each well drilled in the Parshall.]

But the natural gas component is worrisome. (It will trend upward during the winter, but this will be transient.)

If I see the price of natural gas trend upward, I would jump into EOG immediately, but right now, I'm not so sure.

Update: WSJ transcript -- price of NG exits 2009 at $4.75 and will be $5.50 for full year 2010.  Not exciting. BUT, and this is the "big" but: that WSJ article states we should see a decrease in marginal cost of production across the entire U.S. landscape.  My comment: so perhaps, one could argue that might be the same as seeing a $6.00 to $7.00 price for NG taking into account the decrease in production cost. December 7, 2009.

I reviewed this February 14, 2010: this is my recommendation -- if you are interested in buying EOG, buy a small amount periodically. I guess, I'm saying this: dollar-cost average. EOG is in the right industry, and long term prospects are very good for this company.  February 14, 2010.

My only mistake in the February 14, 2010, posting above was to say "a small amount periodically."  I should have said "buy all you can afford to lose." This stock has just popped from $88 when I first posted to over $107 and continued upside potential. Awesome price move. April 9, 2010.

ObamaNation: Anything to Destroy the Energy Industry

June 26, 2011: Wall Street Journal -- $4.00 gasoline ends the fantasy. 

April 25, 2011: Mainstream media (ABC, CBS, and NBC) do not mention the permitorium when talking about the high price of gasoline/oil.

April 25, 2011: EPA shuts down Shell's plans to drill in the Arctic. How much oil are we talking about? Two and a half times all the oil that has flowed down the Trans Alaska Pipeline in the pipeline's 30-year history. That's incredible. And the EPA has shut it down.

April 14, 2011: The permitorium continues and the net widens.

March 25, 2011: Great op-ed in San Angelo Standard-Times (Texas).

March 14, 2011: BLM land grab in Bighorn Basin, Wyoming.

February 14, 2011: Shell announces it will not drill in Alaska's Beaufort Sea due to delay in obtaining air quality permits from the EPA.

February 4, 2011: US federal judge blasts the Obama administration for "determined disregard" of his order to lift a ban on offshore oil and gas drilling last year. Last year? The permitorium continues.

January 23, 2011: No new refineries on President Obama's watch. Not if he has anything to say about it. 

November 30, 2010: New York State halts hydraulic fracking.

September 12, 2010: The EPA could end up regulating all facets of the oil industry.

July 18, 2010: Now that the cap is working and containing (at least for the moment) the BP spill in the gulf, the Coast Guard wants the cap removed so that oil can continue to be brought to the surface for skimmers to remove the oil. Why in the world was there an effort to put the cap in place if they now want to remove it?

July 17, 2010: Obama's administration now threatens the Wyoming coal industry which supplies 40% of coal for America.

June 20, 2010: Never waste a crisis to make policy. Obama's BP spill commission made up of policy makers, not environmental engineers.  Another opportunity to destroy the oil industry.

June 1, 2010: Feds announce criminal probe of BP. Dow plummets. Anything to destroy not only the oil industry, but the entire market. There will be some reetail investors who will probably never come back.

May 31, 2010: This may not destroy the national oil industry quite yet, but this will certainly destroy the economic lifeblood of Louisiana. Obama administration declares a six-month moratorium on new deep water drilling in the gulf. Can you imagine what would happen to the economy of North Dakota if all new planting was not allowed for six months?

May 27, 2010: As Obama's poll numbers continue to plummet over his handling of the BP spill, it is interesting that he said he's not overly fond of the language Salazar used in the early days after the spill, when he said that the federal government has its "boot on the neck" of the oil company.  I agree: it doesn't sound particularly presidential; kinda reminds me of the Nazis in 1939 keeping their boot on the throat of the Czechs.

May 27, 2010: I forgot to post this earlier, the administration's intent to keep "its boot on the neck of BP" until the spill is resolved. Can't we all just get along? It seems like there should be a common interest in solving the problem first and foremost.

May 21, 2010: US Army Corps of Engineers to limit water taken from Lake Sakakawea. This will put the kabosh on fracking in the Bakken.

May 21, 2010: It appears that after paying the ransom, the BP expansion of the Whiting, Indiana, refinery will continue but I can't tell if the EPA is satisfied with new compliance requirements. It's a clever new tactic: give oil companies the go-ahead on new projects, and when the projects are nearly finished, go back, review them, and put them on hold until a ransom is paid. In this case, the city is issuing bonds to pay the costs.

May 21, 2010: Congress to quadruple taxes on oil to pay for a Spill Liability Trust Fund.  Yes, quadrupling. Not doubling the tax rate, or raising it a hundred percent, but quadrupling it, 400%. Four times the current rate. The nice thing about this: I assume the oil companies will pay first for any oil spill before the fund would kick in, and if the fund is not needed, Congress has a whole new slush fund to play with.

March 26, 2010: By delaying new off-shore leases until the end of Obama's term, the administration has essentially banned any new off-shore drilling. The leases were to begin going on sale this July but have now been pushed so far in the future, one might as well move on. The goal to move the US toward independence from overseas oil is dead, again. The price of oil will continue to creep up. As an investor heavily weighted in oil, I don't mind. But what's really going on? My opinion: there are those in the administration who would like to see $150 oil. One, they could blame this on the "big bad" oil companies, and second, windfall profits tax will kick in at $100 oil. Ultimately "Big Oil" is going to pay for Obamacare.

March 18, 2010: The EPA is ready to begin its study of the safety of horizontal drilling and fracture stimulation. The EPA says this will be a scientific study but based on their "global warming" stance, the study will obviously become a political endeavor. After all, even if the process is safe, the end result is the production of ever-more hydrocarbons for use as energy. And we certainly can't have more oil and gas production in this country. This is not rocket science. 

March 6, 2010: Occasionally there's some sanity: for the time being, the sage grouse will not be declared endangered.

February 9, 2010: Now it's the "cutest" bunny that has environmentalists upset. Groups looking to have pygmy rabbit declared endangered in eight (8) western states.

October 29, 2009: COP denies plans to sell US refineries. Yeah, right.

October 27, 2009: "Cap and trade" could destroy US domestic refinery industry. Nothing new here.

October 25, 2009: Surprise! BP refinery expansion in question.

While pundits keep repeating the mantra that no refinery has been built in the United Stated since 1976, when an oil company finally decides to add refining capacity, the current administration puts it on hold. The refinery had met all regulatory requirements and was surprised when the EPA said BP had 90 days to submit new information on air pollutant emissions. BP spokesmen say that this does not mean the project is scrapped but they are disappointed. Everyone thought the regulatory obstacles had been cleared. Not in ObamaNation. [Later: December 18, 2013 -- BP announces completion of the refinery expansion --

BP announced today all of the major new units associated with the Whiting modernization project have been successfully brought on stream.  The start-up of the new 102,000 barrel per day coker in mid-November marked the last major milestone of the multi-year, multi-billion dollar modernization project at the facility in Northwest Indiana.

The refinery is working through post-start-up troubleshooting activities and expects to be ready to begin the ramp up of progressively higher Canadian crude processing from year-end through the first quarter of 2014 as previously announced.]

NDIC Hearing Dockets -- North Dakota, USA

Locator: 10001B.

For the source: NDIC Hearing Dockets

Commentary

This is the only page on my blog site where you can easily find my summaries of various ND dockets. Not all dockets may be summarized. For all dockets, see NDIC home page and click on "Dockets."

I transcribe the scheduled hearings only for my benefit, to give me a "feel" for the direction the industry is headed in North Dakota. For those interested in specific cases, this is not helpful.  For that you need to go to the NDIC web site. According to a reader, regarding the NDIC website:

The premium service allows you to view the cases and subsequent orders issued for specific cases. Be aware that the day of the hearing means little as the cases are heard. If there are no objection the cases with any support evidence is accepted by the commission. It may be one, two, three months or longer before an order is issued. To watch for a particular case write the number down and veiw the most recent orders/cases list or you can view field summary. With basic services all you can see is the docket summary. With the premium service you can also see updates to pending cases.

The NDIC's December 17, 2009, docket got me very interested in looking at dockets very, very closely.

Quick look at the trends in the dockets. 

NEWS

Note: over time, the dates posted have referred to either the date posted, or the date of the docket. More recent postings reflect the date of the docket. 

December, 2024: link here.

November, 2024: link here.

October, 2024: link here.

September, 2024: link here.

August, 2024: link here. The majority of cases for drilling new wells -- 1920-acre spacing, and then most of the other cases for drilling new wells -- even larger drilling units.

July, 2024: link here. Note cases 31036 - 21039, inclusive.

June, 2024: link here.

May, 2024: link here. Some huge multi-well pads.

April, 2024: link here.

March, 2024: link here.

February, 2024: link here.

January, 2024: link here.

December, 2023: link here. Phoenix Operating, very active. Slawson with some multi-well pads.

November, 2023: link here.

October, 2023: link here.

September, 2023: link here.

August, 2023: link here.

July, 2023: link here. Phoenix Operating with a number of multi-wells pads; Oasis with a bit of action in Elk Field and Indian Hill.

June, 2023: link here. CLR with two big cases.

May, 2023: link here. Phoenix is now an operator. 

April, 2023: link here. Case 30012, KODA Resources Operating, 20 wells + 40 wells for a total of 60 wells.

March, 2023: link here. A lot of overlapping 3840-acre spacing units; 2560's terminated. 3840's allow for extended long laterals; three-mile / three sections x two sections;

March, 2023: link here for a special hearing on CCS.

February 2023: link here. Some large units. 

January, 2023: link here. Mostly continued cases. 

December, 2022: link here. A huge number of WPX pooling cases.

November, 2022: link here. Iron Oil, very active.

October, 2022: link here.

September, 2022: link here.

August, 2022: link here.

July, 2022: link here. Grayson Mill is active. A lot of pooling cases. 

June, 2022: link here. Ovintiv with a couple of interesting cases.

May, 2022: link here.

April, 2022: link here.

March, 2022: link here. Updates here.

February, 2022: link here.

January, 2022: link here. EOG is active. Look at all the SWD wells.

December, 2021: link here. Some larger drilling units being returned to smaller units; operators continuing to fill in with large number of wells in drilling units.

November, 2021: link here.

October, 2021: link here.  And here.

September, 2021: link here.

August, 2021: link here.

July, 2021: link here. Kraken active in the Burg-Bakken; the "fad" this month: laydown 1920-acre units.

June, 2021: link here. 

May, 2021: link here. Mostly Kraken and CLR. Not much of interest.

April 2021: link here. CLR has two big cases but otherwise a pretty unexciting agenda.

March 2021: link here. Not much; NP Resources getting a bit active.

February, 2021, link here. Eight pages total. Except for two big CLR cases, not much there.

January, 2021, link here. Six pages total. Except for Liberty Resources and Onintive, not much there.

December, 2020, link here.  Seven pages total. White Butte Oil with requests for flaring for the three Panzer wells. Interesting.

November, 2020: link here. MRO and BR with some "huge" cases.

October, 2020: link here.

September, 2020: only five pages total; mostly continued cases, but several cases with large numbers of wells in a single spacing unit;

August, 2020: link here. Other than a couple of interesting BR cases, the first day will concentrate on the state confiscating old wells; and, the second day will concentrate on continued cases.

July, 2020: link here.  Other than two cases for large overlapping units, nothing of interest. BR to put 16 wells on each of two 3200-acre units; MRO to put 23 wells on a single 2560-acre unit;

June, 2020: link here. Nothing of interest and very, very few new cases.

May, 2020: link here. Almost no new cases. One interesting case: EOG looking to put upwards of 60 wells on one 2560-acre unit in Spotted Horn.

April, 2020: summary here; two fields to be unitized, the Sergis-Spearfish/Madison field; and, the Haystack Butte -Bakken field. a few cases with multiple wells on small drilling units; EOG with five wells to be converted to injection wells; Ballard Petroleum with two wells to be converted to injection wells;

March, 2020: mega-pad drilling; Ovintiv Production, Inc., getting active. KODA Resources getting active. 

February, 2020: a new operator in North Dakota -- Maroon Bells Partners. A few large cases; no flaring cases. Several legal cases involving Whiting and Kraken. 

January, 2020: link here. XTO looking to drill nine Bear Creek Werre Trust wells as injectivity tests. WM of North Dakota Energy Disposal Solutions to drill several SDW wells to be utilized for fracture injection into the Dakota Group; three flaring case; a few commingling cases; a few pooling cases; first day, four pages; second day, 11 pages.

December, 2019: link here. Unremarkable. Most interesting: no flaring cases.

November, 2019: link here.

October, 2019: some huge cases; an earlier post here;

October, 2019: listening tour, Minot, Williston, Dickinson, Bismarck. In addition to these "listening tour" cases, NDIC will hold the regular meeting October 23 - 24, 2019, a week before Halloween. Trick or treat. Observations on initial reading:

• a huge number of pages on the first day, but it looks like a record number of continuation cases
• only two flaring cases?
• CLR with two "huge" cases
• Newfield with a "huge" case 
• CLR looking to recover costs from participating owners?

September, 2019: lots and lots of flaring cases; lots of pooling cases; several pilot injection EOR cases; 

August 21 and August 22, 2019: August, 2019, dockets. Mostly continuation cases. 

July 24, and July 25, 2019: July, 2019, dockets. Mostly pooling. 

June 26, and June 27, 2019: June, 2019, dockets. Mostly commingling and pooling cases. No flaring cases. It's hard to believe I've been doing this for ten years.

May 14, and May 22 - 23, 2019: May, 2019, dockets. Overlapping units are getting larger and larger. Slawson has one case in which it wants to drill 20 wells on each of three 1920-acre units; Whiting wants to drill 14 wells on each of four 1280-acre units; and 14 wells on each of two 1920-acre units. No flaring cases. No penalty risk legalese cases (except for one continuation case). Slawson and Whiting active but otherwise fairly quiet.

April 24 and 25, 2019: April, 2019, dockets.

March 20 and 21, 2019: March, 2019, dockets. A few flaring cases; a few commingling cases; a new non-operator enters the Bakken; but Hess has the limelight this month;

February 20, 21, and 22, 2019: February, 2019, dockets. Very unremarkable. Except: Long Creek unitized.

January 16 and 17, 2019: January, 2019, dockets.

December 19 and 20, 2018: December, 2018, dockets.

November 14 and 15, 2018: November, 2018, dockets. Fairly unremarkable. Lots of pooling (Hunt, Slawson, CLR); Kraken Oil active; EOG, with multiple wells on a 640-acre unit; lots of commingling (Whiting); mostly larger overlapping units with just one or two wells;

October 16, 17, 18, and 23: October, 2018, dockets. 

September 7, 19, and 20: September, 2018, dockets.

August 22 - 23, 2018: August, 2018, dockets; 

July 25 - 26, 2018: summary here; CLR wants to drill 23 wells in one drilling unit in Haystack Butte;

June 1, June 12, 2018: link here.

May 30 - 31, 2018: highlights and summary here; second day mostly continued cases; commingling; and lots and lots of pooling cases; Abraxas has a case for 16 wells one an already busy drilling unit;

April 25 - 26, 2018: highlights and summary here; Crescent Point Energy very active; Bruin with up to 15 wells on 1280-acre units; many, many overlapping units;

March 21 - 22, and April 4, 2018: highlights and summary; 

February 21 - 23, 2018: highlights and summary here;

January 17 - 19, 2018: highlights and summary here; NP Resources with several cases; Whiting has new pool in western North Dakota.

December 13 - 14, 2017: highlights and summery here; not much of interest; True Oil wants to enlarge and unitize "their" field; mostly flaring, pooling, confiscation cases.

November 15 - 16, 2017: full summary. Of interest:

• 26174, Oasis, Charlson and/or Phelps Bay-Bakken, amen, establish an overlapping 800-acre unit; 11 wells on the unit: SW/4 of section 12 and all of section 13-153-95; McKenzie County
• 26211, North Range Resources, re-complete the Duncan Federal 30-24 well (#6959) in the Scairt Woman field into the Birdbear formation, McKenzie County

October 11 - 12, 2017: one case, in multiple ND cities; full agenda summarized; not much of interest. 

September 20 - 21, 2017: full summary;

August 23 - 24, 2017: full summary; 

July 26 - 27, 2017: highlights; 

June 28 - 29, 2017: highlights and summary 

• lots of commingling
• many, many requests for SWD wells
• few pooling cases
• no flaring cases

May 24 - 25, 2017: highlights; Enerplus and Slawson with some significant infill drilling

April 26 - 27, 2017: highlights -- summary of full agenda here --

• 25789, Slawson, Clarks Creek-Bakken, 24 wells on an existing 640-acre unit; McKenzie
• 25790, Slawon, North Fork-Bakken 11 wells on a 1280-acre unit; McKenzie
• 25791, Slawson, Sand Creek-Bakken, 16 wells on a 1280-acre unit; McKenzie
• 25792, Slawson, Elm Tree-Bakken, 18 wells on a 1280-acre unit; McKenzie
• 25793, Enerplus, Moccasin Creek-Bakken, 11 wells on each of six 1280-acre units; Dunn
• 25794, Enerplus, Squaw Creek-Bakken, 9 wells on a 1280-acre unit; McKenzie 
• 25779, Triangle USA, Squires-Bakken, 12 wells on a 1280-acre unit; Williams
  25780, Zavanna, Stockyard Creek-Bakken, 10 wells on a 1280-acre unit, Williams
• 25762, Samson Oil and Gas, injection well, #15666, an EOR pilot operation in the Foreman Butte-Madison pool, McKenzie
• 25759, Sierra Resources, Antelope-Sanish, create two 640-acre units; 6 wells; McKenzie
  25760, WPX, Heart Butte-Bakken, i) establish a 1920-acre unit; 9 wells; ii) establish a 3840-acre unit; 18 wells; Dunn, McLean

March 23 - 24, 2017: highlights -- summary of full agenda here --

• flaring cases for the first time in a long time
• new mineral rights owner: DW Slate
• Abraxas: 16 wells on a 1280-acre unit, already with 9 wells on that unit
• Kraken Oil & Gas with three cases
• Sedalia with multiple Madison horizontals

March 2, 2017: four cases; all relate to Luff Exploration unitizing two Red River units: Corey Butte and Haley, both in Bowman County.

February 22 - 24, 2017: highlights; summary for full agenda;

• CLR with case for 23 wells on one 2560-acre unit
• two new operators/lessess: Trendwell; DW Slate

January 18 - 19, 2017: mostly continued cases and lots of pooling cases. No flaring waiver cases; no risk penalty legalese cases; one or two commingling cases. Two notables:

• Oasis with one case for 90 permits in the Dimmick Lake area, McKenzie County
• Resource Energy Can-Am LLC, relatively new to the Bakken, with two cases, eight wells on 1280-acre units; 40 wells in one case

December 14 - 15, 2016: several large commingling cases; several legalese cases regarding the "halo effect." Highlights in bold at this link as well as the complete agenda summary

November 16 - 17, 2016: welcome to Bakken 2.0 --

• "new" fields
• "new" operators
• large, unusual-sized overlapping units
• large number of wells in new units

Also: no cases involving flaring.

October 19 - 20, 2016: link here. 55 cases -- Statoil and pooling in Williams County. I have never seen so many pooling cases by one company in one small area ever. Enduro has about a dozen cases requesting a flaring waiver.

September 28 - 30, 2016: multiple wells in spacing units, highlights. Unitizing a Madison unit oil field. Another large unit (5,120 acre spacing unit). Full summary here.

• 25243, Enerplus, McGregory Buttes-Bakken, an overlapping 1280-acre unit; 11 wells, Dunn County
• 25244, Enerplus, Heart Butte-Bakken an overlapping 1280-acre unit; 9 wells, Dunn County
• 25255, CLR, Oakdale-Bakken, on an existing 1280-acre unit; 14 wells, Dunn County
• 25256, XTO, Corral Creek-Bakken on an existing 1280-acre unit; 11 wells, Dunn County
• 25257, Enerplus, Antelope-Sanish, on an existing 640-acre unit, 11 wells, McKenzie
• 25258, Enerplus, Spotted Horn-Bakken, on an existing 640-acre unit; 7 wells; on an existing 1280-acre unit, 11 wells; 18 wells total, McKenzie
• only one case requesting flaring exemption
• something I had not seen before: "on a motion of the Commission to consider rescinding Order No. XXXXX entered in Case No. XXXXX which was an application of _____________ pursuant to NDAC § 43-023-03-88.1 for an order authorizing the drilling of a saltwater disposal well to be located in ...." There are 22 such cases before the commission (different case numbers, different companies, different locations, case numbers, inclusive, from 25264 to 25285). It appears that the plan to drill 22 saltwater disposal wells is "now on hold."

August 24 - 26, 2016: multiple wells in spacing units.

• 25194, Hess, Ross-Bakken, three vertical wells on a 640-acre spacing unit, s24-156-92; injection of fluids in one of the vertical wells for the purpose of conducting a pilot enhanced oil recovery project, Mountrail
• 25196, Hess, Truax-Bakken, establish a stand-up 2560-acre unit, 20 wells, Williams
• 25202, Hess, Alkali Creek-Bakken, 12 wells on a 1280-acre unit, Mountrail
• 25214, QEP, Heart Butte-Bakken, 12 wells on each of 4 1280-acre units; 4 wells on each of two laydown 640-acre units, total - 56 wells
• 25215, Statoil, Bull Butte-Bakken, create 10 overlapping 2560-acre units; 1 well each; Williams
• 25216, Statoil, Hebron and/or Squires-Bakken, create 16 overlapping 2560-acre units; 1 well each, Williams
• 25217, Statoil, Squires, Painted Woods, Round Prairie, Todd, and/or Rosebud-Bakken, create 25 overlapping 2560-acre units; 1 well each; Williams
• 25231, Liberty Resources, Beaver Lodge-Bakken, 12 wells on an existing 640-acre unit, s13-156-95; Williams  
• 24687, Enerplus, Antelope-Sanish, establish a 640-acre unit; 4 wells; section 16-152-94, McKenzie 

July 27 - 28, 2016: highlights, not much of interest. 

• CLR case for 28 wells on one 2560-acre drilling unit.

June 22 - 23, 2016: not much of interest:

• 25069, Oasis, Tyrone-Lodgepole, redefine field limits, Williams
• 25076, QEP, Spotted Horn-Bakken, to allow a second bench Three Forks (TF2) well, for an overlapping spacing unit, McKenzie County
• 25080, Hess, Blue Buttes-Bakken, 11 wells on an existing 1280-acre unit, McKenzie County 
• 25082, RIM Operating, Rennie Lake-Bakken, proper spacing, Burke County;

May 19 - 20, 2016: not much of interest;

• 25049, BR, Little Knife-Bakken, 8 wells on a 1280-acre unit; Dunn
• 25051, Hess, Little Knife-Bakken, 9 wells on a 1280-acre unit; Dunn
• 25052, Hess, Big Gulch-Bakken, 13 wells on a 1280-acre unit; Dunn

April 27 - 28, 2016: not many cases, but some are interesting including these two:

• 25003, CLR, Elm Tree-Bakken, 25 wells on an existing 2560-acre unit, sections 14/23/26/35-153-94, McKenzie
  25004, CLR, Antelope-Sanish, 12 wells on an existing 1280-acre unit, sections 1/12-152-94, McKenzie
• Also note some "new players" in the Bakken 

April 11 - 14, 2016: There is one case. The case will be heard on four successive days in each of four cities in North Dakota: Williston, Dickinson, Minot, and Bismarck. The case, number 24957, is on a motion of the Commission to consider adopting new rules and amendments to the "General Rules and Regulations for the Conservation of Crude Oil and Natural Gas" codified as Article 43-02 North Dakota Administrative Code.

March 23 - 24, 2016: highlights -- nothing of significance; no flaring waivers; a couple of penalty rick cases; a couple of permit revocation cases.

February 24 - 25, 2016: highlights; increasing number of 5120-acre units; no flaring waivers, no penalty risk cases; full summary here; XTO with a number of commingling cases;

January 13, 2016: at this post.


December 16 - 17, 2015: summary here; one new operator, Vast Operations;

November 18 - 20, 2015: highlights here; along with the full summary (same link)

October 21 - 22, 2015: it is quite remarkable to see all the requests for flaring waivers based on recent NDIC decisions. Many cases on amending setback rules. Here are the highlights. The summary of the full agenda is posted here. Also note case #24559.

September 16 - 17, 2015: There is almost nothing of interest in this month's agenda. Many of the cases had to do with reducing setback rules. Here are the highlights. The summary of the full agenda is here.

August 26 - 27, 2015: highlights; not many cases, but Whiting and QEP are very, very active; full summary here;

July 22 - 25, 2015: highlights; many flaring cases (this post explains the reason for the flaring cases); Whiting with 91 pooling cases (a one-day record, no doubt); QEP to put 24 wells on each of two 1280-acre units; full summary;

• Newfield with several cases requesting waivers for flaring 
• 24183, CLR, Banks and North Tobacco Garden-Bakken, 14 wells on an existing 1280-acre unit; McKenzie
• 24184, CLR, Camp-Bakken, 22 wells on an existing overlapping 2560-acre unit; McKenzie, Williams
• 24199, XTO, Capa-Bakken, establish seven overlapping 2560-acre units; and two overlapping 3840-acre units; 2 wells on each, Williams
• 24234, Peregrine Petroleum Partners, Flat Top Butte-Bakken, 4 wells on an existing 640-acre unit, McKenzie
• This may be a record: Whiting has 92 pooling cases in one day 
• 24258, Whiting, Sanish-Bakken, establish 6 overlapping 2560-acre units; 11 wells on each, Mountrail
• 24260, MRO, Antelope-Bakken, 15 wells  on two 1280-acre units; McKenzie
• 24361, Lime Rock Resources, Stanley-Bakken, 6 wells on each of three 640-acre units; 6 wells on a 1280-acre unit; 14 wells on each of seven 1280-acre units; 6 wells on each of three
• 2560-acre units, Mountrail (18+6+98+18 = 140 wells) 
• 24362, QEP, Grail-Bakken, 24 wells on each of two 1280-acre units, McKenzie [14/23-150-95; 15/22-150-95] -- see below

June 24 - 25, 2015: dockets; nothing particularly remarkable

May 27 - 29, 2015: dockets; highlights; 

April 22 - 24, 2015: dockets; highlights -- lots of XTO wells; Peregrine Petroleum has their first permit in North Dakota since the early1990's; Whiting pretty much dominates the hearing;

March 25 - 26, 2015: dockets; highlights; 13 wells on an overlapping 640-acre spacing unit; complete agenda here; new operator in the Bakken -- Bakken Shale ND, LLC?

February 26, 2015: dockets; highlights;

• SHD (Spotted Horn Development) with several very large units

January 21 - 22, 2015: dockets; highlights;

• 25380, Petrogulf, 16 wells on a 1280-acre unit
• 23595, EOG multiple wells on 16 1280-acre units;  multiple wells on 15 1920-acre units (number of units could be off by one or two); Parshall-Bakken oil field
• 23599, Statoil, extend Briar Creek-Bakken to create an overlapping 1920-acre unit, and six overlapping 2560-acre units, for single wells
• 23601, XTO, create 7 overlapping 2560-acre units, 2 wells each
• 23608, WPX, 5 wells on an existing 640-acre unit
• A handful of flaring cases
• Several penalty risk cases, Emerald Oil

December 17 - 18, 2014: dockets; highlights;

• CLR with a 5120-acre overlapping spacing unit in Brooklyn oil field
• Whiting with 22 overlapping 2560-acre units in the Sanish
• KOG with several cases for 10 - 12 wells on 1280-acre units
• SM Energy with 11 wells on each of 3 1280-acre units
• Triangle Petroleum with 12 wells on each of 7 1280-acre units
• XTO with a lot of cases

November 19 - 20, 2014, dockets; highlights;

• several cases requesting 5120-acre spacing units
• CLR starting to increase the number of "very large" drilling units (5 cases involving 5120-acre drilling units)
• Newfield with 8 wells on one 640-acre unit

October 29 - 30, 2014, dockets; highlights;

• most boring dockets in all the years that I've been tracking the dockets
• as many as 50% of the cases might be "cont'd" cases
• administrative headaches: single wells in overlapping 1280- and 2560-acre units
• only one flaring case
• CLR with a lot of pooling case
• starting to see an increase in horizontal wells in the Madison

September, 17 - 18, 2014, dockets; highlights; 

• QEP, Grail-Bakken, 24 wells on all of the 640-acre
• the oil conditioning standards

August 27 - 28, 2014, dockets; highlights;

• much of the same; of concern, NDIC is going to re-visit two previous orders
• CLR continues with more 28 wells/2560-acre spacing units
• a lot of cases involving recovering risk penalties
• almost no flaring cases; quite stunning
• Wapiti Operating, LLC, has been in North Dakota, but this is the first time I've seen them in the current boom; last file # for Wapiti was: #13329, Weinmann 1-5, Lucy oil field

July 23 - 25, 2014, dockets:

• CLR to put 56 wells on 2560-acre spacing units

June 25 - 26, 2014, docket:

• cases that caught my eye first time through the agenda
• KOG to drill Madison wells in Epping and Stockyard Creek oil fields east of Williston
• OXY USA: 8 cases requesting permission to use inflatable packers

May 28 - 29, 2014, docket:

• EOG requests permission for 32 wells in one 640-acre spacing unit
• Slawson, 22 wells in Stockyard Creek
• MRO to drill two more wells in Slope County to test the Tyler
• Emerald Oil with more risk penalty cases than I've seen in one docket previously
• lots of pooling
• EOG active
• flaring
• lots of overlapping 2560-acre units being established

April 22 - 24, 2014, docket; 

• first docket with operator requesting order to determine value of flared natural gas (royalties)
• first docket with multiple cases with 26+ wells in one spacing unit 
• a 1,000 more Slawson wells
• Crescent Point getting active with 208 permits for wells
• Hunt getting active with 399 wells
• CLR with request for dozens of wells to determine value of flared natural gas for royalties
• a lot of flaring requests

March 26 - 27, 2014, docket;

• Oasis with two cases to put 18 wells on a single 1280-acre unit
• BR with a case to put 28 wells on a single 2560-acre unit
• Whiting with a number of cases to put 9 wells on 1280-acre units
• WPX to put 42 wells on a 3840-acre unit (#22013)

February 26 - 27, 2014, docket; 21 wells on one 640-acre unit; this was a very strange agenda (at least from my experience); not particularly active:

• lots of overlapping 2560-acre wells with one well each
• a continuation of 7 wells/1280-acre spacing units
• Oasis with 21 wells in one 640-acre spacing unit
• Hess had a very large number of pooling cases
• very few flaring cases; only three or four, it seemed
• lots of commingling cases

January 15 - 16, 2014, docket; interesting cases; trends. (Note: there are three separate links there; that is not all one link.)

• the new norm seems to be fourteen, fifteen, seventeen wells in a 1280-acre unit
• the new norm: a lot of overlapping 2560-acre units
• they're still finding new sites to drill wells in Stockyard Creek

December 18 - 19, 2013, docket; trends. 

• in all my years posting, this seems to have a record number of requests for flaring waivers

November 20 - 21, 2013, docket. 

• Hess and CLR are very, very active.

October 23 - 24, 2013, docket. The highlights. EOG is requesting as many as 34 wells on some drilling units, including a 1280-acre unit.  Other highlights:

• 10+ wells per 1280-acre units is now the norm
• overlapping 2560-acre spacing units will capture "all" Bakken "orphaned" oil
• only two flaring cases

September 25 - 26, 2013, dockets. EOG is requesting permits for as many as 600 wells. 

August 28 - 29, 2013, dockets. Highlights.

• Corinthian with 12 wells on a 320-acre unit
• Corinthian with 12 wells on each of 19 320-acre units 
• Slawson wants to open the vertical portions of some Bakken wells to the Lodgepole

July 30 - 31, 2013, dockets.

• Samson Resources: larger spacing units
• Slawson: multiple laterals with vertical opened to the Lodgepole
• XTO: to drill another 300 wells in Siverston oil field
• XTO: to drill 10 wells on a single 640-acre spacing unit
• CLR: to drill an additional 81 wells across the Bakken
• Baytex: to drill an additional 126 wells across the Bakken

June 26 - 27, 2013, dockets; highlights;

May 29 - 30, 2013, dockets; 

April 24 - 25, 2013 dockets; highlights;

March 27 - 28, 2013 dockets; 

February 27 - 28, 2013 dockets; highlights;
 
January 16 - 17, 2013 dockets; highlights;

December 19 -20, 2012, dockets; both OXY USA and Newfield were absent, though OXY did have a few cases but not new permits; XTO with XOM's deep pockets moving to 8 wells on 1280-acre units; Liberty Resources also moving to 8 wells on 1280-acre units; a couple of cases of multiple wells on 320-acre and 640-acre units; more than usual (?) number of requests to maximize production for a month or so (I assume to give them time to put the natural gas pipelines in); for as many cases as there were, not so many pooling cases, interestingly;

November 28 - 29, 2012, dockets; OXY USA and Newfield were noticeably absent;

October 24 - 25, 2012, dockets, highlights;

September 26 - September 27, 2012, dockets;

August 22 - August 23, 2012, dockets; 

July 25 - 26, 2012, dockets. 

June 27 - 28, 2012, summary; comments. 

May 30 - 31, 2012, dockets. 

April 25-26, 2012, dockets, and highlights

March 28 - 29, 2012, dockets, and highlights.

February 28 - 29, 2012, dockets; and highlights of the February dockets here.

January 18 - 19, 2012, dockets. Also, the highlights of the January dockets here.

December 14 - 15, 2011, dockets.  Also, the highlights of the December dockets here.

November 16 - 17, 2011, dockets; highlights here.

October 26 - 27, 2011, dockets:  the Bakken is clearly moving into the manufacturing phase, and the center of activity is moving to McKenzie County

September 28 - 29, 2011, dockets, with significant news here. 

August 30 - 31, 2011, dockets, with significant news here, here, and here

August, 2011, dockets (cases to be heard on August 4, 2011, have to do with unitization)

July, 2011, dockets; and,  Highlights of the July, 2011, dockets (note: two different links)

June, 2011, dockets

May, 2011, dockets

April, 2011, dockets and what the dockets mean this time around

March, 2011, dockets and what the dockets mean this time around

February, 2011, dockets

January, 2011, dockets

December dockets: NDIC dockets for December, 2010.

November dockets: NDIC dockets for November, 2010.

October dockets: NDIC dockets for October, 2010.

September docket: NDIC dockets for September, 2010.

August docket: NDIC dockets for August, 2010.

July docket: NDIC dockets for July, 2010. 

June docket: NDIC dockets for June, 2010.

May docket: NDIC dockets for May, 2010.  

April docket: NDIC dockets for April, 2010.

March 15, 2010: Activity Moving Back into the Montana Bakken.

March 14, 2010: Water from the Missouri for Fracking.

March 14, 2010: Rig Zone's review and profile of the ND Rig Fleet.

February 21, 2010: Very nice op-ed piece in the Grand Forks Herald.

February 19, 2010, March docket: NDIC dockets for March, 2010.

February 2, 2010: North Dakota oil and gas lease sale brings in $47 million. 40,187 acres; average, $1,176/acre. Compare that to the record set in November, 2009.

February 2, 2010, February docket: NDIC docket for February 24 - 25 - 26, 2010.

January 25, 2010: 400,000 bopd for 10 - 15 years, Bloomberg.

January 24, 2010: Why I am irrationally exuberant. Bakken is sustainable.

January 15, 2010: More track being laid, Ross loading facilty.

January 15, 2010, January docket: NDIC docket for January 13 - 14, 2010

January 9, 2010: Halliburton bringing in 150 workers for Dickinson. City can handle 4 families/month.

January 4, 2010: EOG starts sending oil to Oklahoma by rail; ahead of schedule.

December 24, 2009: North Dakota production hits record: 80 million barrels in 2009; beats record of 60 million barrels in 2008. In 2006, ND was #9 in the US for oil production; in 2009, it jumped to #4.

December 18, 2009: North Dakota state budget surplus is growing much faster than predicted. The most recent budget was drawn up with expectation of 200,000 bopd at $40 - $50 / bbl. The current budget has $600 million in surplus. In October, 2009, state production was 240,000 bopd at a price of around $67.  At 240,000 bopd and $67/bbl, that equals more than $16 million worth of oil being produced EACH DAY.  I don't know what the state's take of that is but $16 million/day sounds like a lot of money.

December 10, 2009: Water could be an issue.

December 10, 2009: Williston with highest ND wages.

November 27, 2009, December docket: my summary of the NDIC's December 17, 2009, docket. If I count correctly, there are requests from EOG for more than 570 wells as well as requests for more than 240 wells from other producers, including Zenergy (78), Encore (48), CLR (30),  and Slawson (27). Remember, Encore has been bought by Denbury.

November 23, 2009: The rich get richer. Washington sends the most solvent state in the nation another $500K to study whether North Dakota refineries could be profitable.

November 13, 2009: More on the recent record North Dakota land lease auction. Some acres in Mountrail County were leased for $8,000/acre. Land exploration companies / producers aren't paying $8,000/acre to watch the barley grow. 2010 is going to be an outstanding year.

November 5, 2009: North Dakota state land oil lease auction brings in record amount, $72 million. Previous record: $30 million in 1980; adjusted for inflation: $80 million. 59,000 acres; average, $1,214/acre.