Monday, June 21, 2010

Some Very Good Wells Coming Off the Confidential List

18050, 1,114, American (AEZ), Tong Trust 1-20H, Ray field
18322, 1,742, Questar, MHA 1-06-31H-150-92, Wildcat (near Van Hook)
18323, 2,654, Newfield, Sand Creek Federal 1-21H, Sand Creek
18176, 1,731, Whiting, TTT Ranch 43-4H, Sanish
18244, 3,014, Whiting, Ness 44-21H, Sanish
18347, 2,074, Whiting, Fladeland 44-9H, Sanish
18381, 1,134, XTO, Carol Federal 24X-6, Lost Bridge
18408, 1,945, Murex, Amber Renee 25-36H, Sanish

It really is incredible. These seven (7) wells were all released on the same day and there was no one, no one, blogging about how incredible these numbers were. Folks have really gotten bored with the Bakken. Or perhaps they put these piddly wells in comparison to what one "leaking" well in the gulf is doing.

See more great wells by clicking here and for complete list of new wells reporting, click here.

Energy Crisis Sooner Than We Think

Article from Seeking Alpha.com on impending energy crisis.

I don't agree with the article. I posted why I disagreed with the article in the comments section of the article.

EPA and Fracking

For those who think I'm "chicken Little" and the "sky is falling" with regard to the EPA and fracking, you may want to attend one of these four "already scheduled" meetings. Four meetings are scheduled to discuss "the plan" that is already being put together. The location of the meetings are very interesting.

I think most of us understand how far along a Federal plan has come when it starts the "public comment" period. Usually 60 - 90 days after the last meeting, the plan is put into place.

The governor has said horizontal drilling would cease for two to three years while the Federal rules were put in place. Maybe this would allow time for the infrastructure for the energy industry everyone wants in North Dakota. It would also provide time to figure out how to manage critical housing needs. (Of course, if drilling is stopped for two to three years, housing really won't be a problem, will it?)

The EPA is winning every battle it takes on under the current administration and it looks like it is going to take on the fracking battle.

Let's see ... if the casing that protects the water table blows out while drilling ....

NOTE: I am being very cynical and inappropriate in this posting. I would recommend that it (the posting, not the EPA) be ignored. I am just venting. Everything will work out just fine. I think even "Chicken Little" had a happy ending. The sky really didn't fall.

MDU Resources Increases Common Stock Dividend for 19th Straight Year

The MDU Resources Group (MDU) board of directors today increased the company’s quarterly common stock dividend to 15.75 cents per share, for an annualized dividend of 63 cents per share. The previous quarterly dividend was 15.5 cents per share.

“We are very proud of our company’s record of returning value to shareholders,” said Harry J. Pearce, chairman of the board. “This is the 19th consecutive year that we have increased the common stock dividend, and we have a 72-year unbroken record of consecutive dividend payments that stretches back to 1937.

And just yesterday, this blog suggested that investing in the Bakken might be one of the better things a young investor could do, and specifically mentioned MDU as an example of a company that rewards its shareholders with a nice dividend. MDU would not be raising its dividend if it anticipated significant cash flow problems going forward. 

Building Permits Up 40% at the Center of the Bakken

Building permits are up 40 percent at the center of the Bakken.

Off topic: this story is so heart-warming, I had to include it. This is true of sheep, also, by the way.

For young / new investors, this is a nice article on investing in dividend-paying companies. There are a number of utilities (like MDU) and any number of oil-related companies that pay nice dividends. (I have been a big fan of MDU ever since I started investing in 1984, but currently do not hold any shares in MDU. It's high on my list, however. For dividends, I have been very happy with EEP which I do hold.)

Second part of a two-part series on the Bakken's impact on local economy.

Bakken connector to Keystone Pipeline  wanted. 
A Houston company wants to ship North Dakota oil through a proposed pipeline that would carry Canadian crude to the Gulf of Mexico.


Quintana Capital Group Ltd. said it wants to build a $250 million, 300-mile-long pipeline system from western North Dakota to eastern Montana, where it would meet TransCanada Corp.'s proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

Terry Cunha, a TransCanada spokesman at the company's headquarters in Calgary, Alberta, said no agreement has been reached with Quintana or any other company wanting to ship domestic crude in its pipeline.