Thursday, July 21, 2011

Top News Stories By Month

These lists will end up being the hardest for me to compile.

 Top stories for July, 2022 -- start with Week 26 

 

Top stories for June, 2022

Fourth straight quarter of double-digit growth in North Dakota taxable sales
Chord Energy: Oasis + Whiting.
The Saudis may have dis-invited Biden.
Inflation at 40-year high.
Price of gasoline across the US at $5.00 / gallon.
White House press secretary says $5- gasoline vs $60,000 EV is comparing "apples to oranges"
National policy makers finally realize it's a refining story, not an oil production story.
Devon enters the Bakken; acquires RimRock assets.
White House press secretary says it is the patriotic duty of refiners to sell their refined products at a loss.
Bridger Pipeline has its permits.
SCOTUS "overturns" Roe vs Wade. Will cost the GOP in the mid-term elections.
EIA "systems failure" (see below)

Chevron exits California; moves to Texas

NCAA football: USC and UCLA to join the Big 10, exit the PAC-12.

Top stories for May, 2022

Saudi Arabia is big winner.
US Senate committee votes to recommend NOPEC bill.
Boeing to exit Chicago; move to Washington (DC).
TLIS: another Rivian wannabe.
EOG declares a special dividend of $1.80 on top of regular dividend of 75 cents; total dividends paid this quarter could fund 150 wells.
The incredible Baily oil field.
With record high gasoline prices, the Biden administration scraps new leasing in Alaska, GoM.
Baby formula shortage; turned out to be much more severe than many expected; caught administration completely flat-footed; even Amazon is out of formula.
Uvalde shooter kills 19 fourth graders, two teachers.

Top stories for April, 2022

Premium oil development acreage continues to expand in North Dakota.
China's lock downs.
Germany's automobile manufacturing slows, stops.
Saudi Arabia's foreign exchange reserves continue steep slide.
Europe's urgent need for natural gas.
All indications: Russia's economy will implode by summer, 2022.
ATT - Warner Bros Discovery -- merger-spin-off complete.
Week 0: Biden Surge
President Biden backtracks: will now allow drilling on federal land.
Haynesville natural gas production hits all-time high
.
Bakken's RimRock oil and gas up for sale.
An XTO Pelton well maintained incredible production over three years.
Biden blinked: opens federal land to drilling (and, fracking, OMG).
US exports record amount of crude oil and refined oil products.
This is where it ends; the mask mandate ended
.
Schlumberger making hay.
Kevin O'Leary visits North Dakota; another cryptocurrency venture?
XTO reports completion of two huge DUCs.
North Dakota's April blizzard shut in 60% of North Dakota crude oil production.
Diesel is still the top international energy story; ULSD is new buzzword.
Buffett makes huge investment in CVX.
The Enerplus winter fur pad wells are incredible.
A 250,000-bbl crude oil pipeline, Watford City, ND, to Baker, MT.

Top stories for March, 2022

Russian economy imploding; death by a thousand cuts.
Crude oil surges in prices as White House considers ban on importing Russian oil.
Another global SPR release
US crude oil demand setting new records.
North Dakota on its way to being #1 state for GDP.
Continental Resources will partner with Summit Carbon Solutions on carbon capture and sequestration
; will check off the ESG box.
XOM to sell Bakken assets?
US CPI at 7.9%; highest in more than 40 years
.
Russia on brink of insolvency
.
Diesel will be a top five story for 2022
. And, here.
Oasis - Whiting announce merger. And, here.
Bill to release 260 million bbls of oil from the SPR introduced
.
At $120 oil, Saudi Arabia is dropping rigs
.
Cheniere has sold out of natural gas through 2040
.
WTI off the chart
. Sunday, March 6, WTI surged.
$9 gasoline: California
.
Buffett keeps buying more OXY. And here.
Apple announces its most powerful chip ever.
Crude oil volatility: spikes to $140; then quickly falls back to $90;
The myth of spare capacity.
Diesel to be one of the big energy stories in 2022.
Lots of hand-wringing, not much of a story: the Fed raises the "Fed rate" by 0.25%; first raise in years; inflation coming in at 7.9%;Oasis pays first variable dividend of $3.00 / share.
The MRO Marion well hits 500K bbls crude oil in about 18 months
.
The spectacular MRO wells in the Antelope-Sanish
.
Administration has change of heart; FERC to approve pipelines

US crude oil supply drops below 27 days
;
Biden announces SPR release of one million bbls per day for six months. All SPR release posts will be followed here.
ISO NE: trending toward $1,000 / MWh
.

Top stories for February, 2022

Inflation at 7.5%; highest since 1982.
Mask mandates ending across the country; proposal to vaccinate "under-5" pulled back.
North Dakota minerals belong to tribes.
Whiting to start drilling 3-mile lateral wells in the Sanish
.
Staggering production reported by three MRO wells
.
A staggering MRO well.
Trudeau kills Canadian Trans Mountain Pipeline
.
Mexico to become net importer of crude oil
.
US clearly outproducing Russia, Saudi Arabia.
California gasoline price hits all-time high.
Dated Brent sells for $100.80.
SPR inventories continue to fall; big headline; little story.
Ukraine likely to have a new government by this time next week
;
Brent goes over $106
Biden announces his nominee to the US Supreme Court; if approved, 2/9 of court will be African-American forever;
Phil Mickelson and KPMG part ways;
USPS sticks with gasoline-ICE delivery vans;
New England burned more oil this winter than any time in past decade to generate electricity;
US Supreme Court won't take the DAPL case; technically DAPL is operating without a permit;

Top stories for January, 2022

NDSU claims yet another national championship
Daimler Truck Group spinoff closes
; ticker symbol as of January 6, 2022.
US sets Covid records; "everyone" has it" -- CNBC -- January 7, 2022
FDA significantly expands Pfizer vaccine emergency use authorization;
Mexico to phase out all crude oil exports by 2023

Reversal of US Capline Pipeline helps Canada set export records.
Is OPEC running out of spare capacity?
$80 oil. $84 oil.
Lime Rock Resources acquires Abraxas' Bakken assets;
Oasis finds another sweet spot
.
Everything points to a "soft" takeover of Ukraine by Russia by Valentine's Day.
Full crypto collapse underway.
ISO NE burning record amounts of oil to keep the lights on
. And, here. And, here.
Operators fracking drilled wells as quickly as possible.
Evolution Petroleum enters the Williston Basin
;
Samson Oil & Gas Bakken assets up for sale
;
BR wants to unitize Haystack Butte
;
Ranking of Bakken producers
;
An old 2008 MRO well with a 54X jump in production;
New England cyclone-bomb; Winter Storm Kenan, and, here; NE ISO on the brink of disaster.
Enerplus very active: in the FB Leviathan; winter fur pad;

Top stories for December 2021

WTI hits $77; EOG breakeven at $30; covers dividend at $36.
US Covid cases set all-time record.
XOM to sell Fayetteville assets to Presidio Petroleum?

US crude oil in storage goes below 27 days
for first time in a very long time.
ET-WMB merger goes down in flames
.
USGS releases 2021 geological survey
of the Bakken/Three Forks, disappointing, ant-climactic; and, here. Ovintiv with permits for nine wells on one pad.
Capline reversal at full capacity
.
US LNG exports continue to surge. And, here.
High price of gasoline: Biden administration turns to oil industry for help.
Russia unable / unwilling able to provide adequate natural gas for Europe
.
Brandon's SecEnergy to oil companies: "drill, drill, drill
."
Elon Musk: Time's person of the year.
Production per US rig has almost doubled since 2019
.
Coal
Spare capacity being questioned. And, here.
Housing starts surge.
Covid spurs biggest rise in life-insurance payouts in a century
.
Inflation spikes.
Bruin's FB Belford wells rolling out Bakken 4.5
.
The Midwest Carbon Express would be the world's largest
.
Random look at Sinclair in the Bakken
.
Devon: $10,000 bonuses
.
AAPL breakout. Apple granted delay in Epic case.
UK/EU energy crisis continues
.
US to become global leader in LNG exports
.
Daimler spins off Truck Group
.
Williston mayor Howard Klug on Fox and Friends Sunday morning.
MRO: operator of the year?
The MRO Fisher USA well: 400K with huge jump in production.
MRO Fisher USA: a 30-fold jump in production
.
Omnicron emerges; New York governor calls it a "disaster emergency." WHO skips calling it the "Xi" variant; takes the next Greek letter, omicron. Omicron turns out to be a dud.
Flash cash on Friday, day after Thanksgiving;

Top stories for November 2021

CLR enters the Permian. Says it cost them $8,000 / acre. And, here. And, here.
Brandon turned 79 years old, Saturday, November 20, 2021.
CLR's Woodrow Star "A" is back on line
.
Boom: ISM manufacturing literally off the chart
.
Global CO2 emissions revised notably downward; no one notices

Saudi to Brandon: "You do your job; we'll do ours.
"
European energy crisis: it's not even winter yet
.
US equity markets on a tear.
And, here; and, here. And, here. And, here. The roaring '20s. And, here.
Bonanza Creek is now Civitas.
Maine says "no" to huge transmission line to bring electricity to Boston;
An old Petro-Hunt Charlson well trending toward one million bbls crude oil cumulative
, one section;
Is the DAPL at risk of being superfluous?
Loses market cap record to MSFT
.
Smith and Wesson moves to Tennessee. Adios, Springfield.
Grain-by-rail
: North Dakota co-op / railroad sets record -- 142-railcar, 8,500-foot unit train.
The Rivian IPO
. Bobcats on steroids. With Rivian IPO, Big Three: Tesla, Rivian, and Lucid.
WTI plunges;
Corn shipping on ND rail
.
North Dakota sets natural gas capture record: 94%
.
A new operator in North Dakota
; and, here.
Grayson Mill looking to have twenty wells in the middle of nowhere
.
The Fufeng gambit: the Chinese and Grand Forks
.
"I don't have that number in front of me."
Announces two-billion gallon release of crude oil from SPR
. US SPR at 18-year low.
WHO skips "XI"; moves to Omicrom for new Covid variant
;
Samsung to build second "chip" plant in Texas; $17 billion;
Apple announces acceleration of its autonomous vehicle program
;
Williston: top-growing micro-city in America
.
After fifteen years, a huge jump in production
;

Top stories for October 2021

Saudi foreign exchange reserves surge;
The Permian is the global swing producer
;
Summit Carbon Solutions
.
Project Tundra, CCS, not going well
.
US continues to set petroleum export records
.
Apple to build huge campus in Culver City, west LA
. Apple revolution.
WTI cracks $85
Bitcoin cracks $61K
Shatner goes where no 90-year-old has gone before
.
Trenton, ND, population 272, wins $2.8 billion lottery
.
Amber Renee- R: finally drilled, completed, reporting;
Henry Hub flows hit 13-year high
;
WTI breaks $80
;
OPEC+ doesn't have the capacity
; Saudi Arabia oil reserves are plummeting.
Antarctica: record low temps since records began; Arctic ice sheet furthest since 2021
;
KMI proposes short connecting pipeline in Williams County
; note the price/mile;
Williston has grown much larger over the years
.
Oasis on a roll; Oasis Midstream announces merger with Crestwood Equity Partners
;

 

Top stories for September 2021

Ford announces four new "greenfield" EV, battery factories;
Global energy is now the #1 story worldwide. Period. Dot.
UK natural gas energy prices surging
.
NDIC website remains compromised for the second straight month;
NOG looking to buy a stake in Comstock Resources in the Bakken;
General Milley botches Afghanistan evacuation; drone kills innocent family of ten, including seven children;
Surging natural gas prices;
Surging, all-time record prices for natural gas in UK and Europe; UK, EU energy crisis;
Venezuela hits rock bottom; China eyeing opportunities
Covid-19 is so yesterday
;
Enbridge buys Moda;
Chevron looking to sell Eagle Ford assets;
ND county with highest GDP per capita
; and, here;
Top growing counties in the US;
Random update of two monster EOG wells;
The Bakken is back: the core is expanding. and, here;
Update: the Whiting $271 million Sanish deal;
NOG looking to buy a stake in Comstock Resources in the Bakken;
ND's Basin Electric Power Co-Op to expand carbon capture
;
ConConchCOP;
Pipeline: WMB;
Bobcat and radar;
Ivermectin: summary of evidence
.
Surging US equity markets. And, here. The US 2021 September swoon. Equity surge. And, here.
COP buys Shell's assets in the Permian. And, here. Increases dividend by seven percent.
GM to replace batteries in every Chevy Bolt.
Williston is back! A new building boom.
Australia's "Great Barrier Reef" is at record high; record levels of coral coverage;
Merck announces "pill" to treat those who test positive for Covid-19.

Top stories for August 2021

Tokyo Olympoics end; lowest television ratings on record
US exits Afghanistan; within hours Taliban has Kabul surrounded; first US military casualties since February, 2020: thirteen reported.
Now that the Keystone XL has been killed, US crude oil imports from Russia are hitting all-time highs;
DAPL update: tribes ask for extension.
Saudi's fortunes recover
;
Japanese delegation visiting North Dakota
;
US implied oil demand: 23 million bopd
;
Resident Biden orders release of SPR oil (August, 2021)
California will carry two sets of energy books to meet ESG goals
.
US LNG exports smashing records
;
Despite small number of active rigs, Aramco posts nearly 300% leap in 2Q21 profits
;
Europe has a real natural gas problem on its hands.
Surging energy prices in Europe, Asia; natural gas prices in the UK;
Privately-owned Cargill reports biggest profit in its 156-year history.
Energy story after energy story of new records.
Another M&A story: Chesapeake and Vine.
Coal demand is spiking.
Work on the Red River Water Supply Project commences.
Three-well blowout/fire north of Charlson
.
EOR project, Liberty Resources, east of Tioga
.
Bakken wells simply get better and better.

CLR with nine rigs;
COP looking to sell Bakken assets.
One word: incredible
.
ONEOK expanding its Bear Creek plant southwest of Killdeer
.
Lodgepole reef well: 27x jump in production.
Best operators in the Bakken.
Devon.
The real cost of killing the Keystone XL
.
Delta variant surges. (August, 2021)
WTI drops below $63. (August, 2021)
North Dakota retains #2 spot as nation's second-largest oil producer.
Spiritwood: Marathon - Archer-Daniels-Midland joint venture, renewable diesel from soybeans.
Blue hydrogen in North Dakota -- it's happening.
The lower Three Forks: update; GeoNews
;
The Three Forks lower benches, and fracking sand
The lower Three Forks
;
CLR's FIU inventory

North Dakota is #2 among states generating electricity from wind and solar.
Apple, Inc: most profitable company in the world. Saudi Aramco falls to #2
.The next big thing: cryptocurrency.
How long have we been working on battery technology?

Top stories for July 2021

Sir Richard Branson makes history flying to near-space (?). Also, here.
Apple supplier readies 2-nm chips for 2024
;
Natural gas prices / shortage in Europe
;
Shell to develop GOM "Whale" project
.
Exxon's margins completely off the charts for petrochemical units
;
Saudi Arabia suddenly cancels Motiva expansion plans
;
DAPL activist now a felon; eight years in prison.
Apple in talks to acquire NFL's SNF ticket.
Chevron considering exiting the Permian?
Marathon's Tesoro High Plains crude pipeline still at risk.
Proterra buses. The Proterra bus story.
GM tells Bolt owners to park their cars outside; away from structures; fire risk
.
GM recalls Chevy Bolts (second time these cars have been recalled); serious, serious problems;
Saudi Arabia foreign exchange reserves: an all-time low
? And, here.
Jim Cramer calls the top in oil: $72.
A well to watch: the WLL Littlefield well
;
North Dakota pipeline carrying one-third of Bakken oil at risk
.
New seed-cleaning facility in Williston
;
Whiting to acquire additional acres in the Bakken;
Long pole in the tent in the Bakken: frack crews;
Update: Dickinson renewable diesel plant
;
MDU begins construction on natural gas pipeline gathering expansion

Liberty Resources to try EOR again.
A WPX Nokota well produced at a rate of 160,000 bbls over thirty days
.

Top stories for June 2021

WTI hits $75;
US pulling "all" ground troops out of Afghanistan
Blue hydrogen, Mitsubishi.
The US economy is on fire; no one is going back to work.
Record number of jobs available in the US.
Conversation has changed: now it's all about the demand surge;
Shell considers selling its assets in the Permian.
Oasis returns to the Bakken
Biden kills Arctic refuge drilling;
Shell says Pemex can have it;
Is the pandemic over?
Gasoline trending toward $6/gallon;
Could Denbury be the next acquisition?
Nascent hydrogen industry in North Dakota? Could involve DCG in Beulah, ND
WBI pipeline gets FERC approval; connects Tioga Plant to northern border;
Enerplus with permits for a nine-well Tennis pad well
;
Oasis Rolfsrud well with five-fold jump in production;
Bakken natural gas pipeline expansion approved
;
Most visited site for the week;
MDU makes the Fortune 500;
TC Energy abandons the Keystone XL
OPEC in disarray
Saudi's foreign exchange reserves plummet
Saudi Arabia in transition
.
Saudi Arabia in transition. How much oil can Saudi Arabia really produce?
Meridian Davis refinery "on the ropes"
First production numbers of Petro-Hunt well re-entered, lengthened.
MRO has completed all of its spectacular wells on the P-R-S-4W pad
Folks think $6 billion from the SPR can help pay for the $1-trillion-infrastructure bill
CLR: Rodney 1-29H re-frack.

Top stories for May 2021

Oasis exits the Permian; returns to the Bakken as a pure-play Bakken operator;
ND Supreme Court rules for oil companies on royalties
; and, here;
Chip shortage
;
DAPL is allowed to remain open;
Saturn Oil & Gas: Oxbow acquisition north of Williston
;
Colonial Pipeline shutdown by hackers
;
ADM to build North Dakota's first-ever dedicated soybean crushing plant and refinery
;
Pemex racking up millions of dollars in late payments to oil companies;
Cabot (Marcellus) and Cimarex (Permian) merge
.
Merger: Bonanza Creek Energy / Extraction Oil & Gas
;
North Dakota crude oil production back over 1.1 million bopd;
Enerplus acquisition in the Bakken, an update
; Bruin acquisition;
EOG with six new Liberty LR permits
.
EOG with first permits in the Bakken this calendar year
.
CLR proposed up to sixteen wells on one 2560-acre unit
.
CLR begins to drill the Long Creek Unit
; and, here.
US equity markets soar; no stopping this market except a black swan
;
Amazon acquires eleven seasons of NFL's Thursday Night Football
;
Amazon acquires MGM catalogue.
Marcellus: EQT buy's Alta's northeast Pennsylvania's assets;
Sempra delays FID on mega-LNG export terminal
;
EOG: like most operators, huge quarter; declares special dividend; here;
Oasis picks Bakken acreage
; here;
PXD says its breakeven in the Permian: $15/bbl
;
CLR with eight new permits in Brooklyn oil field
; and, here;
A five day frack, Hess, EN-Labar
;
A closer look at the monster well Petro-Hunt is bringing back on line;
Waltons buy 2,000-acre ranch in southwestern North Dakota;
A Bruin well goes over 650K Bbls crude oil in less than two years;
Bridger pipeline approved; North Dakota PSC approves Bridger pipeline.
Petro-Hunt Charlson well with jump in production for the second time.
Capline pipeline reversal; DAPL implications? 
Marathon to run Dickinson refinery with wind energy.
Business is booming in Williston
.

Top stories for April 2021 

$80-oil by the end of the year -- Goldman Sachs;
WTI breaks through $64
; later, $65;
Happy Birthday to the Williston Oil Basin: 70 years old
; also, here;
Pemex telegraphs it may "restructure";
Peak oil: Saudi Arabia;
Significantly worse: Saudi Arabia's foreign exchange reserves;
US gasoline demand hits nine million bbls/day.
US auto sales surge; Tesla blows through analysts' forecasts;
Covid-19 in Michigan out of control;
PXD pays top dollar for DoublePoint Energy
; analysis;
The four recent Permian deals;
DAPL to stay open for the time being; and, here;
Liberty Pipeline killed;
Enerplus to acquire a few Hess acres
;
CLR appears to have fracked 20 Simmental / Angus wells
;
CLR ramping up Bakken operations;
Does Williams County have a future with regard to oil?

RimRock with eight new FBIR Johnson permits
;
Oil-rich Bakken shale shows promise of natural gas growth despite fewer rigs
;
Seasonal flu" a thing of the past;
 Mideast break-even points;
US equity markets keep setting new all-time records;
North Dakota crude oil production drops almost 6% month-over-month;
DAPL pipeline still in purgatory, or is it "in limbo"?
CLR: damn the torpedoes ... eight more permits;
A stratigraphic study of the Tyler formation
;
NBA viewership approaching historic lows
Corn prices soar
;
The Red River diversion project
;
Earth Day and the resurgence of global coal demand; and, here; here; here; here; India;
Census: Texas gains two US House seats; California, NYC each lose one seat
;
NYC to "fully re-open" July 1, 2021
;
The bankruptcy numbers in the oil patch, 2015 - 2021
;
Prince Philip, dead at 99

Top stories for March 2021

US shuts down Canadian oil by killing Keystone; prefers Russian oil with greater CO2 emissions;
Biden flip-flops -- allows leasing on federal land; apologists: 60-day moratorium ends;
All Apple retail stores in the US are now open
;
Coming out of the pandemic, global economy surging;
US economy on a tear; and, here; S&P hits all-time record, goes above 4,000
Automobile sales are surging;
WTI plunges as European nations extend lockdowns;
Weekly EIA petroleum report: so many records broken
; and, here;
Gasoline draw was the largest since 1990
; records go back only to 1990;
ERCOT first CEO; seven of 15 directors resign
;
Why the February freeze won't change Texas; archived here;
Those $7,000 Texas utility bills "wiped out";
How shutting down the DAPL would impact the Bakken -- RBN Energy
;
Energy emissions rebounding above pre-crisis levels

OPEC maintains cuts in production; huge surprise;
Enbridge acquires Blueknight Energy assets
;
US Saudi oil imports slow to a trickle
;
Saudi Arabia's exports continue to fall;
US overtakes Saudi Arabia as India's second highest crude oil importer in February, 2021
;
Rig counts in Saudi Arabia jump
;
Ovintiv selling assets in the Eagle Ford;
Pioneer Energy acquires DoublePoint Energy in $6.4 billion deal
; commentary;
Devon announces industry-first variable cash dividend;
Jump in production, an Ovintiv Bernice well
;
Nine Point Energy files for bankruptcy;
EOG ends drilling / fracking operations in the Bakken;
Deep and deeper: CLR releases results of two "deep" wells;
A spectacular MRO Three Forks second bench well
;
An eleven-pad well;
Projections for 2021
CBR on steroids -- the Canadian Pacific acquires Kansas City Southern;
Legacy Fund deposits: fourth straight month of increasing deposits
;
Daughter wells not as good as parent wells? Oh, give me a break!
Suez Canal back to normal;
Tesla blows through analysts' forecasts.
South Dakota attorney general pleads not guilty to three misdemeanor charges related to "hit and run"

Top stories for February 2021

Reparations.
Daimler to split truck division from company; Daimler splits off its truck division;
Ford forced to curtail F-150 production, semiconductor chip shortage
;
US crude oil exports hit record high in 2020;
Enerplus putting together its "whale" pad
;
Hess drills an EN-Labar well in record time;
The incredible IP reported by the Hess AN-Baohmback well;
Texas freeze; here; the initial blast; hope springs eternal; forecast;
Buffett initiates $4 billion position in Chevron;
CLR has just completed eighteen wells in Elm Tree
CLR's thirty Dennis / Flint Chips permits; another six Flint Chips permits; here; here; here; and, here;
Equinor sells Bakken assets to Houston-based company;
Saudi Arabia's financial situation continues to deteriorate; but Biden will get this turned around;
NASA's Perseverance transmits incredible video footage from Mars
;
Saudi Arabia borrows at negative rates for first time ever;
Apple to partner with Target;
EOG: "double premium"; double-talk? 4Q20 earnings;

Top stories for January 2021

Freezing weather in China; record snow in Madrid; headed to the US;
US shale producers outperformed NOCs and Supermajors in 2020;
Active rigs trending toward new low;
Semiconductor shortage; Toyota shuts down production in China due to "chip" shortage;
US imports no Saudi crude oil: first time since 1985;
First-ever ethane-produced electricity power plant slated to be built west of Williston, ND
;
Biden revokes XL pipeline permit
;
La Vaca Muerta esta muerta; and, here;
North Dakota leads the nation in the vaccination rollout program
;
Hess reports another one for the record books;
A Hess EN-Labar well extrapolates to 100K over 30 days;
Enerplus to acquire Bruin; and, here;
EIA predicts CO2 emissions will surge over next two years;
Biden backtracks: allow leasing to continue on BLM;
In case you missed it, the old Long X bridge project is finally completed;

Top Stories for December 2020

Hewlett Packard Enterprise leaving Silicon Valley, heading for Texas.
Saudi oil imports to US hit all-time lows.
Tesla to be added to S&P 500;
Texas to have America's largest solar farm;
Williston's Christmas tree is taller than heavier than the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center
;
MRO: reports a record-setting well
;
All three major indices hit all0time intra-day highs
;
IPOs: DASH, ABNB;
Unitization;
US economy: US household net worth rose to an all-time record in 3Q20; US shipping ports setting all-time records; stock market hitting all-time highs;
why Dominion got into trouble
;
WPX reporting huge Topaz wells
;
Commentary; the Topaz wells here;
December propane exports hit all-time high
;

Top Stories for November 2020

Saudi Aramco's profit plunges;
North Dakota leads the nation in number of new Chinese flu cases per capita; and, here;
And just like that, they quit drilling in North Dakota
;
Saudi Arabia says current revenue won't meet obligations; Saudi with staggering losses
;
Mexico will grant SRE a conditional export permit (spoiler alert: Mexico needs the cash);
Oasis: court approves pre-packaged restructuring program
;
Home sales surging. At 14-year high
.
Migration from NYC, San Francisco continues
. And, here.
Sempra's new LNG export terminal on west coast of Baja California.
Sempra's new LNG export terminal on west coast of Baja California.
The new Apple chip, the  new Apple computers
.
Low-water fracks
;
Saudi Aramco's IPO was a really, really bad idea;

Top Stories for October 2020


President Trump returns to White House after diagnosis of Covid-19; three nights at Walter Reed; Washington Post asks if it's time to defund Walter Reed;
US overtakes USA to become largest LPG supplier to China
;
OPEC basket drops below $39;
Mexico misses production forecast; down to 1.7 million bpd
;
MRO: operator of  the year?
The Bakken is back; crude oil production up 12% month-over-month;
DAPL expansion approved by Illinois;
Intermodal shipping facility in Minot comes on line;
Conoco-Concho deal announced;
Pioneer (father)-Parsley (son) to merge; and, here;
North Dakota oil production increases by a whopping 12% month-over-month; local media ignores;
BR's Zephyr production jumps;
Legacy Fund deposits continue to grow;
Mideast in deep doo-doo; and, here;
Newest US Supreme Court justice sworn in on Hillary's birthday
;
COP could wave good-bye to Alaska;
New Long X bridge now open; currently two lanes; will eventually be four lanes;
COP getting active in the Bakken
; and, here; and, here;
BR eyeing to double number of wells in a Hawkeye drilling unit
;
MRO continues to report huge wells in the Bakken
;
MRO reports four huge DUCs
;
MRO with interesting completion strategies; and, here;

Top Stories for September 2020

Kuwait's crude oil burn rate sets record (to run a/c)
US housing sales soar
;
Devon - WPX announce merger
;
Natural gas in storage continues to set new records
;
Oasis Oil files for reorganization; prepackaged
;
Meridian refinery cleared to begin construction
;
It is now clear that MRO has the best wells in the Bakken, bar none;
Record IP for MRO in the Bakken
;
MRO's pads in the Bakken
;
Four huge MRO wells
;
Williston named North Dakota's city of the year
;
RBG dies at age 87;
Thirteen Charolais permits pending for CLR
;
Slawson: nine new Genesis/Genekat Federal/Loon Federal permits
;
Pemex production drops to 1.857 million bopd
;
North Dakota's natural gas production increases 17% month-over-month
;
BR: 30 wells in a 2560-acre unit
;
BR: 15 wells in a 1280-acre unit
; and, here;
WPX: eight wells one a 1280-acre unit
;
Slawson: 18 wells in one case;

Hess: 15 wells on one 1280-acre unit
;
Incredible wells becoming the norm
;
Newfield Moberg well
;
Short-lateral EOG well
;
US crude oil imports from Saudi Arabia at all-tie low
;
NOG announces first acquisition in the Delaware Basin, paying upwards of $30,000/acre
;
An Oasis Rolfso N well goes over 500K bbls crude oil
;
East coast newspapers reporting North Dakota is a hot spot for the coronavirus
;

Top Stories for August 2020
  
ND Supreme Court rules in favor of family over state re: minerals;
Federal government loan to pay city's portion of new airport;
Bakken labor force near all-time high;
North Dakota's $38 million lawsuit against US Army COE allowed to proceed;

Saudi's crude oil exports drop to lowest on record
;
US natural gas power generation hits record
; and, here;
US oil exports to China soar 139% in July, 2020;
US oil exports to China may set record next month
;
MRO hitting on all cylinders in Reunion Bay
: huge IPs; and, here; anticipates 18 wells on one drilling unit;
US home sales surge; strongest monthly gain since 1968
;
Joe Biden informed by DNC he picked Kamala Harris to be his running mate;
Whiting reorganization plan okay'd by court
;
Bakken natural gas surges
;
OXY warrants
.
Saudi Armaco's publicly traded company in deep doo-doo; here; and, here;
MRO reports two incredible DUCs
;
MRO reports a monster DUC
;
Social distancing
.
Apple, Inc, overtakes Saudi Aramco as most valuable company;
NASDAQ hits 29th record close of the year
;
Housing industry booming in North Dakota
;

Top Stories for July 2020
 
 
Top Stories for June 2020

MRO looking to put twenty-three wells on one 2560-acre unit
Land grab by the state

Murex: to re-enter two old wells
;
The industry is still studying communication between wells due to fracking
;
Bruin: reporting spectacular wells
;
Re-fracking in the Bakken
;
The incredible BR Tailgunner pad

Amtrak to cut service to Williston to three days per week
;
NOG announces core bolt-on acquisition

MRO reports four incredible DUCs
;
Bakken EURs keep increasing
:
Legacy Fund deposits plummet

Fifty-fold jump in production -- Petro-Hunt, Charlson oil field
;

Top Stories for May 2020


Top Stories For April 2020 
    
Boris Johnson released from hospital;
Paddlefish season canceled this year;
The year we start seeing a surge in wells reaching  500K crude oil cumulative 

Top Stories For March 2020 

Saudi Arabia to flood the world with oil; no love lost between Prince MBS and dictator-for-life Putin; and, here
Trump way ahead of the curve on this one; bans travel for non-Americans from all of Europe, to include the UK
US "net exporter" of petroleum first time since 1973;
Biden captures party's nomination;
Tom Hanks and wife "recover" from Wuhan flu
Boris Johnson; and, Prince of Wales (the old guy), both test positive; Queen apparently "safe"; 

Top Stories For February 2020

The year many wells start going over 500K cumulative;
Coronavirus: 2019-nCoV;
US crude oil exports hit all-tine record;
Nancy Pelosi tearing an official copy of the president's state of the union address in half;
"Totally acquitted" forever;
Emoluments lawsuit slammed by federal court, 3 - 0
 Record low unemployment; huge jobs report; and, here; and, here;
Record stock market indices;
Record US satisfaction;
US GDP: staggering;
US proved reserves increase another 12% in 2018;
US natural gas production growth: staggering;
New Mexico goes over 1 million bopd;
Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead;
So much work yet to be done in the Bakken;
Coronavirus jumps to South Korea;
Sweden says no additional money to fight global warming;
Saudi Arabia with an existential crisis;
CNN viewership collapses;
CLR: damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead; Cedar Coulee;
Apache ditches (writes-off) Alpine High in the Permian;
Jet fuel supplied plummets;
The Hess Ortloff wells: an injectivity test;
Kraken: looking to drill nearly 100 wells in one township; and, here;
CLR wants 20 wells in one drilling unit in Cedar Coulee; and, here;Williams "cancels" the Pennsylvania-New York Constitution Pipeline;

Top Stories For January 2020

The month ends with US Senate yet to vote acquittal for President Trump
US sets new all-time production record
Britain officially out of the EU;
Chevron, XOM: quarterly losses, huge; Chevron announces dividend increase;
 Halo effect pushes this old well over 500K bbls crude oil;
US kills Iranian top general;
US returns as net oil exporter; and, here;
US awards most expensive shipbuilding contract ever;
WTI surges
Third lowest number of permits issued in the past nine years
US crude oil exports surge; up over 30% week-over-week; and, here;
WPX acquires Felix Energy;
Re-fracking: an incredible CLR Mountain Gap well;
#30541, Bruin, Fort Berthold; 600,000 bbls in less than two years;North Dakota hits all-time record population;
US gasoline inventories at record high; google doofus-in-chief;
India about ready to import much more US crude oil;
Making Texas great: the top largest planned petrochemical and plastics plants;
Outrigger-XOM deal.
Halo effect on many, many wells near the Kraken Bigfoot wells;
100-stage wells; 20+ million lbs of sand; 3-section long fracks;
Gulf of Mexico hits record daily production;
California-based utility to open regional HQ center in Houston
US economy on fire; another incredible jobs report; Dow briefly touches 29,000 for first time
Record state multi-family apartment complex sale in the Bakken;California Tesla registrations plummet;
NDIC reports 21 wells on one day (clearing a backlog, not a fracklog)
CLR looking to put 24 wells in one drilling unit;
ND $800-million, greenfield, Theodore-Roosevelt refinery in trouble;
Saudi Arabia foreign exchange reserves surge after IPO launched;
Well permitted in 2012, finally drilled/completed eight years later;
Economy remains on a tear; housing;
US housing starts soar 17% in December; 13-year high
US housing starts soared 41% year-on-year basis
All three major equity indices hit all-time highs
Impeachment is forever!
Development wells: two 10-well pads 2,000 feet apart;
US weekly crude oil production hits 13 million bopd;
Top Stories For December 2019 

US shale oil (West Texas light, Bakken) in top demand by global refiners;
Mega-fracks by Slawson; 92-stage fracks;
Rising Bakken gas production displacing western Canadian gas on pipelines;
XTO's unitized Hofflund oil field; the unitized Grinnel oil field; and, here;
Provide production growth in decreasing-rig environment; and, here;
RBN Energy post on ONEOK's new Elk Creek NGL pipeline;
North Dakota sets all-time production record; whopping month-over-month jump in production;
Oil production tops 1.5 million bopd
Whiting: canceled permits; here; here; here; new permits; update here;
Whiting cancels seventeen permits
Saudi Arabia foreign exchange reserves trending toward an all-time low;
Saudi Aramco IPO launched; largest company in the world;
Independence Day for America -- September 30, 2019 -- a day that will live in history;
Four wells, each have gone over 500,000 bbls cumulative;
A Petro-Hunt Wisness well goes over 500,000 bbls cumulative;
A BR well goes over 500,000 bbls cumulative;
XTO well goes over 500,000 bbls cumulative;
Hess receives approval for Bakken EOR
CLR founder Harold Hamm steps down as CEO ("but not going anywhere")
CLR's Uhlman / Pittsburgh wells updated; some huge jumps in production;
Hess announces thirteen completed DUCs, huge;
Midland, TX, now the richest metropolitan area in the US based on per capita income;
Williston Economic Development office wins international award;
Manufacturers no longer reporting monthly EV sales;

Top Stories For November 2019

Independence Day for America
The staggering Bakken
DAPL operator's activity in Texas will positively affect the Bakken;
The Bird Bear wells have been completed; a neighboring well goes over 500K bbls of crude oil cumulative
Five incredible MRO DUCs;
Breakeven points; and, here;
A CLR Hawkinson well with a 13-fold jump in production;
A BR well, only two years old, goes over 500,000 bbls of crude oil cumulative;
Schwab moving out of California; moving to Texas; here; and, here;
CLR reports an 81-stage frack;
Is EOG about ready to exit the Bakken?
ONEOK bringing additional natural gas processing on line in North Dakota
A Whiting Rolla Federal well goes over 500,000  bbls crude oil;
A Bruin Fort Berthold well goes over 500,000 bbls crude oil; drilled in 2013;
A WPX Lawrence Bull well with 300,000+ bbls crude oil in ten months;
Saudi Arabia delays payment on Sabic deal by four years;
Something going on in Haystack Butte?
First trade surplus in petroleum for the US in more than 40 years;
MRO: breaks the $5 million floor for completed well costs
North Dakota: hardest working state in the US -- WalletHub;
XTO: existing wells to be used as EOR pilot study
Wells drilled back in 2010 that have produced in excess of 500,000 bbls of oil
Worse sugar beet harvest in 75 years;

Top Stories For October 2019

Conan the Belgian Malinois takes out ISIS #1; Conan trumps Trump;
UK halts all fracking
MPC to be broken into three companies;
PetroShale: 320-acre spacing in the Bakken;
Slawson's dual laterals; some stacked; some not;
CLR reports an 83-stage frack; 20 million lbs;
Old Bakken well goes over 500,000 bbls; 18-fold jump in most recent month;
EOG looks to put 22 wells in one 2560-acre spacing unit;
Huge spike in gasoline demand;
California's high price of gasoline;BR looks to put 20 wells on a 2560-acre drilling unit;
20-fold jump in production -- old Oasis well in Elidah oil field;
Williston Basin International airport: bigger planes; more passengers;
Williston, ND: #3 in the US for number of millionaires per capita;
Williston Basin International airport open for business;
Denbury and CO2-EOR in southwestern North Dakota
California gasoline, $6/gallon; Texas, $2/gallon; and, here;
A Petro-Hunt USA well hits one million bbls production in less than eight years;Staggering jump in production for an old CLR Cedar Coulee well
Huge jump in production for an old CLR Jack Pennington well
Nice jump in production for an old CLR Collison well in Avoca oil field;
4x jump in production, CLR's Carson Peak in the Oakdale
MRO's Appledoorn well shows a 33x jump in production
A production jump for the MRO Voigt well 
A BR Guadalupe well produced more well in last year than preceding nine years
Tanker day rates surging; hitting new records; $10 million;
The Bakken "Magic"
Parent / child wells
Just too much work to be done in the Bakken
A new operator in the Bakken: Wave Petroleum;
A look at 30 wells in a single section in the Elm Tree oil field;
"Damn the torpedoes; full speed ahead"; CLR's Vardon wells;
US to become net exporter of total liquids (crude oil and petroleum products)
Advantaged oil; and, here; and, here;
Whitiing in talks with Abraxas
North Dakota "game-changer":
Slawson with a dual lateral;
US crude oil imports to plummet next month (October, 2019)
US to be net exporter of crude oil and petroleum products

Top Stories For September 2019

The cruise missile attack on Saudi Arabia  
Claims that Saudi has returned to pre-attack production capacity
Saudi switches from sweet oil to sour oil to meet contracts
Inter-formation uplift?
Productivity per rig continues to increase in the Bakken
CLR: 22 wells on a 2560-acre drilling unit in Cedar Coulee
CLR: upwards of 30 wells on a 2560-acre unit in Elm Tree 
As predicted years ago, a Bakken well demonstrates a second jump in production;
Dr Dean Strinden passes away, Williston physician
For the first time in history, global sales of EVs declined month-over-month;
Global EV sales fall for first time in modern history; and, here; and, here;
EV sales for July, 2019 fall 14% year-over-year; Chinese EV sales fall for first time on record in July; US EV sales disappointing;
Record US SUV sales;
North Dakota's general fund revenues exceeded forecast;
US natural gas reserves: 140 years at current demand;
US the new swing producer;
Energy Transfer to buy SemGroup for 65% premium, $5 billion
US economy: longest expansion in history
T. Boone Pickens dead at 91;

Saudi Arabia's foreign exchange reserves fall;
XTO reports 60K+ Bobcat Federal wells using a whopping 18 million lbs proppant;

Top Stories For August 2019

US gasoline demand set an all-time record;
US gasoline demand surges to all-time high;
First CLR LCU well is being drilled
Cedar Creek Unit 8B 14X-2A-8 celebrated 58 years of production
The Bakken is expanding: Tier 2 becoming Tier 1
Unit trains to Mexico
Rigs don't matter: Motley Fool
Bruin reports a huge well in Tyrone oil field north of Williston
Update: CLR's increased density project in Camp oil field
Welcome to the one-million-bbl club
Hess: best-performing US oil company so far this year
International beef processing plant in Williston
Cactus II pipeline operational
Number of ND wells on inactive status near all-time high
Record flaring; record NG production despite low rig count; despite near record number of wells on inactive status;
Break-even costs down to $12/bbl in North Dakota
Seeking that optimum well spacing: RimRock at 14 wells/drilling unit and counting  in South Fork;
Bonus: $16,000 / acre, Eagle Nest, Dunn County
Re-fracks in the Helis Grail
North Dakota ranks #4: energy expenditures as a percent of GDP
Saudi Arabia in panic mode; price of oil slides; currency war anticipated;
Saudi US imports at record low;
Exciting developments in Long Creek oil field
Long X Bridge replacement update
Whiting reports huge, unexpected loss; cuts 33% of its workforce

Top Stories For July 2019 

Mueller hearing a bust; and, here;
#2 and #3 hz wells in the entire United States are in North Dakota
FWIW: US CO2 emissions to drop in 2019
EOG Austin well still flowing after one million bbls production
ONEOK announced additional infrastructure
College student finds 65-million-year-old Triceratops fossil in ND Badlands
Global energy consumption great at fastest rate in a decade
China's insatiable energy demand; coal;
Chinese crude oil refining hits all-time record;
India's insatiable energy demand;
North Dakota Supreme Court sides with state on mineral royalties;
CLR has permits for a 12-well LCU Jessie pad in Long Creek
MRO came close to breaking all-time 24-hour IP record
FBIR capture rate: 69%;
Taxable sales, 1Q19, up almost 10% for the state;
EIA graphic -- US crude oil production surpassed 12 million bopd in April, 2019
ND oil production to surge; waiting for infrastructure to catch up;
Hess reports two record-setting wells in the Bakken
MRO's re-fracked Bill Connolly well producing at 40x prior to frack
XTO to build gas plant in Williams County, just west of Williston
Ray, ND, being considered for new fractionation plant
Liberty Resources fracks Bakken well with 16 million lbs

Top Stories For June 2019

DOW posts best June since 1938
US crude oil production hits all-time high; does this despite less drilling activity (i.e., fewer rigs); and, here;
CLR's Monroe well brought back from the dead;
North Dakota with 15,000 job openings (official); as many as 30,000 (unofficially);
For the first time in recorded history, the US has more job openings than folks looking for them ... and no wage inflation 
McKenzie County: #1 oil producing county in US
The Woodrow Star "A" 1 went off line
A South Red River B well has gone over the one-million-bbl milestone
June, 2019, Legacy Fund deposit exceeds annual average for every year but two
Rystad reports that the US leads the world in oil reserves;
XOM-SABIC joint venture ethane cracker unit near Corpus Christi announced
President Trump declares disaster for spring flooding in North Dakota;
EOR using natural gas
Liberty Pipeline proposed: Bakken oil from ND to Cushing, OK
Jargon 101 -- The Bakken Revolution
Glacier National Park removing signs that say glaciers will disappear by 2020
US light truck sales, May, 2019 -- highest in almost 15 years
DAPL okayed -- Iowa Supreme Court
Slawson may have just established a new, all-time initial production record
Peregrine Petroleum has its first new permit in a long, long time
Major increase in hotel occupancy and jump in number of building permits issued, Williston, ND CLR announces initiation of a quarterly dividend
Weekly rig counts are meaningless

Top Stories For May 2019 

Record IP reported by Hess;
Commentary: short cycle vs high impact;
Western Natural Resources, KKR to buy Williston assets
A new operator in the Bakken: KODA Resources; and, here;
North Dakota sets record for number of non-producing wells
US to become net exporter of gasoline for first time since JFK was president
McKenzie County, North Dakota, is the #1 crude oil producing county in the US
Unexplained jump in production, Petro-Hunt well in Charlson oil field;
North Dakota electricity demand could almost double by 2040;
New York denies natural gas pipeline; and, here; and, here;
OXY-Anadarko-Buffett; and, here; and, what's next for Chevron?
MRO continues to impress with its re-frack program in the Bailey oil field; and, here; and, here;
MRO has a well that extrapolates to 135,000 boepd
2,665 wells are off-line for operational reasons
CLR gets a great well with a "do-over"
QEP refracking wells in the Helis Grail
Petro-Hunt's monster USA well shows another jump in production
"Parent-Well-Uplift" phenomenon
Overland Aviation breaks ground for new facility at new Williston airport
Oasis is back! A 50K+ well;
MDU to add a half-billion cfpd natural gas capacity in the Bakken
ONEOK will expand the Bakken NGL Pipeline
Williams County led the state in taxable sales/purchases growth
Plastics plant promoter files for bankruptcy
CO2 EOR resulting in 60% recovery
Parent-well-uplift; a reader's take on the "halo" effect; Whiting slides; rate of return, infinite;
Second production jump for a Whiting well
MDU/WBI proposed a pipeline to connect Tioga with Northern Border Pipeline
Increasing talk of a petrochemical plant in North Dakota
Northstar auction;  

Top Stories For April 2019

Hess to expand; will have largest natural gas processing plant in North Dakota; Hess earnings; and, here;
Vantage pipeline updated
NOG announces "small" acquisition
ONEOK to expand the Bakken NGL Pipeline
Chevron to buy Anadarko; and, here;
US sets all-time energy consumption record in 2018
Price of gasoline in California spikes; refinery runs well below the 5-year average
In the Bakken, most wells coming off confidential list, going to DUC status
Record number of Bakken wells off-line?
US retail surged in March
MRO's "small" fracks;
MRO reported a huge Fannie USA well, low number of stages;
MRO's completion strategy: small number of stages; less proppant; and, here;
EOG cancels several Riverview permits
Freedom Energy with its second North Dakota permit
Gets worse in the BLM
Largest cross-border natural gas pipeline to be operational early summer;
Record low unemployment -- not seen in 50 years; and, here;
  
Top Stories For March 2019

Bakken, Niobrara producing at all-time highs -- RBN Energy
Frack sand revolution
Bakken: #1 in NGPL yield among US shale plays
CLR to drill 18 wells in 2560-acre unit; already "a dozen" wells in that area
Enerplus plans a 9-well "Metamorphic Rock" pad;
QEP re-fracks the Paul wells;
Boot Barn opens; other Williston economy stories;
ND refinery to help greenfield refineries in the Permian
New ND state law defining mineral rights ownership under "the Lake" ruled constitutional
Fracking strategies in the Bakken
Enbridge's Line 3 delayed for at least a year, Minnesota
Staggering MRO wells have been updated
Random update of yet another spectacular MRO well;
Random update of spectacular MRO wells;
Tier 2/tier 3 looking good
A Madison well with five horizontals 
Peregrine acquires interests in McKenzie County
Ballantyne acquires about 140 Crescent Point Energy wells in Bottineau County

Top Stories For February 2019

MRO continues to impress; new MRO well producing at 104K bbls/month;
MRO re-fracking program in Bailey oil field
MRO is just incredible; a single well produced at a rate of 99,000 bbls/month
New non-operating company in North Dakota: Lincoln Energy Partners
VEAC announces termination of QEP deal;
Abraxas likely to sell Bakken assets
Cobra Gas & Oil acquires Enduro's assets in Williston;
Four counties in western North Dakota will outproduce Venezuela

Top Stories For January 2019

Boot Barn coming to Williston
Bakken well drilled in 2011 closing in on one million bbls
MRO may have a record well in the Bakken;
20 - 70 years of Bakken drilling
North Dakota oil revenue study, 2008 - 2018
Hess to put 14 wells on one drilling unit just outside of Epping
North Dakota loess as a potential microproppant
Jump in production for an EOG Clarks Creek well
Bruin reports three huge wells in the Bakken 
Whitting: Generation 4.0 fracking completions
MRO and Bruin are competing for bragging rights
A Bruin Fort Berhold well that produced 350K boe in less than five months
Random update of the MRO Arkin well; low volume proppant
Shale wells not producing as much as operators predicted
Oldest wells in North Dakota: to celebrate 65th birthdays
Happy Birthday, Mr Greni, 46 years old and going strong
Permitting hit recent record in October, 2018
Impact of neighboring fracks; and, here; and, here

Top Stories For December 2018

US sets record holiday sales; up 42% over previous record set on year 
The United States becomes a net exporter of crude oil and petroleum products for first time in 75 years
US producers delivering a one-two punch to OPEC
Williston office earns international award
The Bakken setting all kinds of records; Director's Cut -- October, 2018, data;
A preliminary study of the middle and lower benches of the Three Forks;
Noble Energy tiptoes into the Bakken
Bakken sets new natural gas production records; flaring
Canadian CBR now exceeds Bakken CBR
Number of active rigs remain at four-year high;
Canada curtails oil production
Legacy Fund banks another $70 million;
NGL pipeline proposed for the Bakken
Kraken Operating acquires Kaiser-Francis assets in Mountrail County
Happy Birthday, Ms Kate Hopkins #1 -- 61 years old
Meridian hires McDermott for Davis Refinery engineering -- Rigzone
Appeals court dismisses claims against Dakota Access -- Courthouse News
President Barack Obama takes credit for US shale revolution; and, here.
Tier 3 looking like Tier 1?
A 37-year-old Silurian well abandoned after producing one million bbls of oil
Vern Whitten's top 40 photographs of the Bakken

Top Stories For November 2018
US crude oil inventories now over 450 million bbls; more than 7% higher than average.
North Dakota air ambulance airplane crashed shortly after take-off; all three on board killed
Legacy Fund deposits hit recent record
NDIC liberalized flaring rules; in addition, BLM will defer to NDIC, tribal law
Volume of sand used in middle Bakken vs Three Forks wells
Kraken to drill as many as 14 wells in one 640-acre unit
MRO reports eight incredible wells in Reunion Bay
BR's Dodge wells in Dimmick Lake all back on line
Update on CLR's plan to unitize Long Creek
Weekly US crude oil inventories surge; back to re-balancing
CBR: Obstacles -- focus on the Bakken -- RBN Energy
Operators showing an interest in 3-mile long laterals?
Record IPs in the Bakken keep breaking
Sets several all-time records
BLM will defer to state, tribe on flaring issues
Officials see North Dakota crude oil production increasing to over 2 million bopd 
Well goes from pump to free flowing
Oasis now modeling1.5 million boe EUR type curve
Getting ready to start work on "new" natural gas plant near Watford City
EOG: net income of $1.2 billion vs $101 million one year ago
Big Oil moves in on tight oil -- Forbes
Did DNR just swap 200,000 acres in North Dakota for 80,000 acres in the Eagle  Ford?

 Top Stories For October 2018

Oasis hits the sweet spot in Willow Creek
Every well coming off confidential list in 4Q16 has been completed 
Well drilled back in 2011, comes back on line, stronger than ever
The estimated cost to re-frack
NDIC's "Ordinary High Water Mark" Study accepted by NDIC
Williston revokes liquor license for Hearbreakers; suspends license for anoth  The Brooklyn oil field: the Bakken's "ever-ready" oilfield
Another MRO well extrapolates to 107,000 bbls in one month; also, here 
MRO reports a well that produced at a rate of 82,000 bbls in the first month of production
EOG looks to put "multiple wells" on two 640-acre units
$8 million/year production for an old CLR well
Ordinary high water mark survey will be re-visited (again)

Top Stories For September 2018

Newfield plans to add 42 wells to three 1280-acre units
Well in Fort Berthold area produces 150,000 bbls of crude oil in two months
Record IP in the Bakken?
EOG well hits one-million-bbl threshold; and, another one here;
Re-fracking: MRO in the Bailey 
ONEOK looking at the biggest plant yet?
Targeting the Madison
Random update of an old, old CLR North Red River B well
White Rock Oil & Gas re-enters, re-completes an old Duperow well
North Dakota flaring getting worse
Coming out of nowhere: Oasis now the 4th largest producer in North Dakota
EOG fracking in the Parshall; and, here; and, here;
EOG's monster wells in Clarks Creek
Conlin's Furniture to close
Watford City posts largest jump in elementary school enrollment 
Filloon on MRO
MRO likely to be names "North Dakota's operator of the year"; and, here;
NDIC accepts "ordinary high water mark study" results
Bruin: almost 100,000 bbls of crude oil from one well in one month
SHD's Golden well pegs the company's natural gas pressure gauge
XTO wants to unitize a large area of the Bakken -- good luck with that
MRO wells in Bailey oil field hitting 300,000+ bbls crude oil in one year
QEP Tipi with 110,000 bbls in two months
Equinor picking up the pace: here; and, here; and, here; and, here;
PetroShale anticipates eleven (11) more wells on an existing 640-acre drilling unit
ONEOK to build yet another natural gas processing plant, Demicks Lake II
ONEOK to increase natural gas processing in the Williston Basin
Williston, Dickinson lead increase in August enplanements (boarding at airports) 

Top Stories For August 2018

Whiting buys more Bakken acreage
NOG announced its largest acquisition in history
Whiting with permits for an 8-well pad in Tier 2
MRO continues to report incredible wells;
BR reporting some huge Midnight Run wells; and, here;
EOG well, only five years old, goes over one million bbls
Natural gas expansion project proposed for the Roosevelt Gas Plant near Watford City; would quadruple daily throughput
The quality of recent Bakken wells is simply staggering. CLR has raised the bar: CLR is now targeting EURs of 1.2 million bbls for wells with optimized completions. See 2Q18 corporate presentation.
DUCs ontinue to increase in the Bakken -- regardless of what others say
Breakeven in the Bakken: $35 -- Rystad; $17 in some areas -- NDIC
Bakken 2.5 -- year-end update, 2017
Enbridge to buy Spectra Energy Partners
Whiting bucks trend; using "less" proppant
CLR: using max amounts of proppant
CLR fracks a Three Forks Jersey well with 74 stages
A short lateral EOG well goes over one million bbls -- only ten years old
US crude oil inventory drops below 23-day-supply -- not seen since 2014
New single family housing permits increase in Williston (may or may not load)

Top Stories For July 2018

COP temporarily exits the Permian; will focus on the Eagle Ford and the Bakken
North Dakota tax receipts increased well beyond forecasts; and here, 72% higher than projected;
Petro-Hunt acquires 130 Divide County wells from SM Energy
The US is THE global swing producer
New CLR wells produces 150K BOE in thee months
The spectacular MRO wells in Bailey oil field

Top Stories For June 2018

1Q18 taxable sales for the state of North Dakota surge
North Dakota will out-produce Venezuela by the end of the summer
Short term, operators in the Permian could face huge challenges; is the Permian gasier than originally thought? The Bakken still looks like the "gold standard."
The Keystone XL is no closer to completion than it was twelve years ago
CLR: all optimized completions now exceed 1.1 million boe EUR type curve
Update on the oldest CLR Anna well
How neighboring fracks might extend production for older wells  
Huge initial production from an Antelope-Sanish MRO pad
CLR is blowing away the competition in the Bakken -- SeekingAlpha contributor
CLR "massively increasing production"; all optimized completions now have 1.1 million bbl EURs
An old Slawson Bazooka well updated
Getting ready to open up Tier 3 and Tier 4 areas?
Man-camps filling up again in the Bakken 
Very fitting: Miss Williston wins Miss North Dakota
Davis Refiner in southwest North Dakota under construction after getting air quality permit
Legacy Fund deposits set a recent record
Bloomberg on the Comebakken 
Governments stepping back from ludicrous renewable mandates

Top Stories for May 2018

Bakken crude differentials soar on widening Brent-WTI spread
Reader identifies five Bakken horizontal wells that have each produced one million bbls to date
Life history of a Bakken well
Bakken is top producer among shale plays ranked by productivity of new wells -- EIA
Random look at several "50K+" wells -- WPX -- Spotted Horn
MRO in the early running for "best operator of the year"
Anticipating another 24-well array in a 1280-acre drilling unit
MRO reports a record well it the Bakken
CLR has permits for a 12-well pad in Banks oil field
Bakken shale getting "back in the money" -- Bloomberg
North Dakota's oil and gas tax revenues now exceeding forecasts 
WLL conference call: it's all about the Bakken
MPC buys Andeavor
Long X bridge, south of Watford City, slated for 4-lane replacement
New birthing center 
Shale's best days are behind us -- Art Berman -- I guess that's why records continue to be broken; and, here;
Curve build study
CNBC on location in Williston this week
Crude oil production over the next five years
US breaks yet another crude oil production record
Saudi's foreign reserve assets surge  

Top Stories for April 2018

MRO's staggering IPs -- recently completed DUCs; and, here
Newfield may be the best producer in the Bakken -- Filloon
Different completion strategies being tested
North Dakota has completed the much-anticipated high water / low water study of the Missouri River in the Bakken
A must-read commentary on the DAPL over at "Say Anything Blog"
North Dakota will be more flexible regarding flaring 
A reminder: how important the DAPL was for North Dakota
The Madison -- a workover (a frack of sorts) -- jump in production
Enerplus with permits for a 10-well pad
Bakken production up 24% year-over-year
New operator in the Bakken: Challenger Point Energy
SM Energy to exit the Bakken
Definition; evolution of completion strategies
CLR with an 82-stage frack
CLR with a 71-stage frack 
Housing shortage in Williston
Bald eagles make astonishing comeback in North Dakota
Random look at a Madison well that Cobra is considering for re-entry; the well has produced 613,000 bbls of oil to date; drilled in 1982, celebrating its 36th birthday this year
NOG to acquire 1,319 acres in perhaps the best Bakken for $49 million, mostly cash

Top Stories for March 2018

2017 taxable sales and purchases: up 24% in the Bakken; -3% for most of the rest of the state
Production per rig, the Bakken beats all other plays
SHD's "Golden" well has been added to the list of "monster wells"
CLR EUR type curves up to 1.1 million bbls
The myths of shale -- Richard Zeits
Boomtown is back -- Bloomberg
Another huge re-fracked MRO well
MRO is reporting huge wells in Bailey oil field
MRO re-accomplishing a failed frack 
MRO reports an incredible pad in Antelope oil field
Random update of an MRO mini re-frack in Antelope oil field
Frack using 20 million lbs sand
Huge jump in production in an old WPX well
A Madison well has a jump in production; month-over-month, production jumped 20x; Madison well fracked; 
An old EOG short lateral coming up on 600,000 bbls of crude oil cumulative
Average daily production per well improves in the Bakken
Huge jump in production in this well; no re-frack data
Filloon does not see evidence of shale operators running out of drilling locations
US Army Corps of Engineers miss DAPL deadline
Two new elementary schools for Williston; addition to Williston High School
Williston's fire safety rating: jumps to top 2% of the nation

Top Stories for February 2018

The Bakken is back! North Dakota led the nation in real GDP growth as the oil and natural gas industry rebounded
Perhaps the biggest story in the Bakken this month: emergency task force activated to look at ways to handle surging natural gas and natural gas liquids production in the Bakken.  But perhaps as big: Andeavor to build a huge NGL logistics hub at Belfield. Also, here. And, here.  And, here, a $150 million investment in the Bakken.
NDGS has an update on Three Forks, second bench
Bakken's natural gas production setting records

Top Stories for January 2018

A WPX Hidatsa well may have established a new Bakken production record
Mapping Williston's new airport
Bakken truck traffic increases
WPX with a record-breaking Bakken well
CLR with a 25-million-lb frack
Taxable sales surging in the Bakken
A record well in North Dakota?
XTO with two 75-stage fracks
CLR reports an 86-stage frack 
EOG "returning to the Bakken: permits for a 6-well Austin pad in Parshall oil field
A monster well -- Whiting's Liffrig well in the Sanish -- has been updated
Hess-Targa, NG processing plant -- biggest Bakken story of the week
RimRock to build a $400 million gas gathering system in the Fort Berthold area
North Dakota on track for new crude oil production record in 2018
EIA posts update on the Elk Creek pipeline project
Oldest active well in North Dakota now "inactive" 

Top Stories for December 2017

Random update of re-fracked QEP wells in Heart Butte
The Bakken strikes back, version 2
Newfield completes seven huge DUCs
Whiting discovers new oil and gas pool in western North Dakota
Legacy Fund receives record yearly deposit for December, 2017
12-mile, 2-foot diameter pipeline proposed in heart of the Bakken
MRO reports a record DUC
24 wells on 640-acre spacing: the White Butte Jore Federal wells
No longer a crime to accidentally kill a migratory bird 
Jump in production of an old Oasis Lawlar well
We continue to see unexplained examples of jump in production in individual wells
The Bakken, an "oily" play is producing more natural gas then the Mediterranean's largest off-shore natural gas field -- by a lot
Nodding donkeys failing in the Bakken
Oasis to sell non-core Bakken assets; the past year for Oasis; personal thoughts on the deal;
Twenty-four wells in one 640-acre drilling unit -- the White Butte Jore Federal wells; and, here;
Bakken crude oil production jumps 7% month-over-month; only 54 active rigs; almost 900 DUCs; and, almost 1,500 inactive wells
North Dakota set a new BOE production record
USGS to reassess the Bakken
Bakken on its way to 2 million bopd
Myths about US crude oil production, Richard Zeits
US / BLM suspends flaring restrictions for one year
Natural gas production in the Bakken is increasing at a faster rate than oil production
EOG to report four spectacular Clarks Creek wells 

Top Stories for November 2017

MRO reports a well that produced 75,000 bbls in one month
An astounding 41 permits renewed  
DAPL means huge earnings for Oasis
EUR type curves in the Bakken: 1.5 million boe
QEP talks about re-fracking in earnings call
the Brooklyn oil field is looking better than ever
MRO has a huge DUC -- and no one even mentions it
Whiting reports the results of a thrice-fracked Koala well in Poe oil field
Oasis has three rigs working one drilling unit
Whiting has two rigs on the 15-well Mega-Pad in Banks Oil Field
Newfield reports a 62-stage frack 
Shooting range opens outside Williston
North Dakota State wants a "stay" on the mineral rights case  

Top Stories for October 2017

No evidence that operators are "running out" of Tier 1 locations in the Bakken
Linn Energy to sell its assets in Williston Basin
CLR to add 24 wells to a drilling unit that already has 6 wells
Two new Liberty Resources wells extend the East Tioga oil field
CLR makes first sale of Bakken crude oil specifically for overseas destination
Judge allows DAPL to continue to flow
Number of Bakken wells producing greater than 30,000 bbls/month surges
Rig targeting the Madison north of Minot
Update on a dual completion well.
MRO reports three huge DUCs; one may be close to an all-time Bakken record
Five MRO wells with lousy IPs that came back to surprise me

Top Stories for September 2017

A new operator in the Bakken
Update on Halcon's plans to exit the Williston Basin
New post office in Watford City opens
Boomtown's taxable sales surge 30%
MDU to supply Bobcat plant (Gwinner, ND) with natural gas via new pipeline
Oasis launches a midstream MLP
The Bakken is among the top five oil and gas plays for IRRs
Update on the proposed truck route around the northeast side of Williston
Clean-up begins near Tioga of one of nation's largest onshore oil spills
A short Bakken lateral, less than ten years old, goes over 1 million bbls crude oil produced
The Bakken is among the top four oil and gas plays for best break-even prices (Citi)
$5 million Buck Scheele animal shelter could be completed by next spring
Legacy Fund breaks through $4 billion in deposits
Commercial flights at Williston airport remain at capacity
Can you say "high-intensity"? CLR with a 56-stage, 26-million lb frack
North Dakota has state's first ever Miss America
Lynn Helms opines on the $125 billion oil companies have invested in the Bakken
Taiwan signs huge ND wheat deal 

Top Stories for August 2017

President Trump to visit Bismarck next week
Lewis and Clark Bridge, southwest of Williston, opened
Williston wastewater facility, opened
CLR with permits for seven super-long / extended long laterals
An EOG Austin well hits 1 million bbls produced
Staggering one-month production in two Bakken wells
ND well with highest monthly rate of any well in ND history?
Whiting to sell some Fort Berthold area assets
US states' fiscal health: North Dakota #2, behind Florida
Bakken traded higher than WTI this past week
Natural gas production takes front seat in the oil-driven Bakken
CLR's Holstein Federal wells are telling us a story 
Jump in production -- one of the peculiarities of the Bakken
Re-fracking works
Fracking the heck out of CLR's Candee 11-9H in Chimney Butte
$10,000 for a mineral acre in the Bakken
DAPL upends region's dependence on CBR
Cardon Global opens new office in Williston; to oversee new Williston airport
Federal funding now reaches $73 million for this $112 million project
Water Resource Recovery Facility, Williston, $105 million, ribbon-cutting

Top Stories for July 2017

Zuckerberg visits Williston, Boomtown USA
Halcon selling all of its operated interests in the Bakken
US crude oil exports hit monthly record
OPEC production hits new record high
Oasis reports a nice 50-stage, low-proppant Three Forks 1st bench well
Oasis plans largest natural gas processing plant through expansion of the Wild Basin Gas Plant
Putting a new natural gas processing plant into perspective -- it will be the largest in ND
Hallmark Card on Main Street, Williston, will close
42 Emerald Oil wells transferred to Petro-Hunt
 
Top Stories for June 2017

Another pipeline connection to the DAPL; near Watford City
Windridge Operating: a new operator in the Bakken?
Enerplus with some interesting in-fill plans
Another large natural gas plant for ND
Triangle USA emerges from bankruptcy under a new name: Nine Point Energy    
BR to place 16 wells in one drilling unit 
North Dakota oil industry shows signs of a rebound
XTO reports an incredible well after being shut in for a few months
Harold Hamm expands NG deal with South Korea
MDU with three natural gas projects
Williams County Public School District 8 breaks ground for new middle school
Judge orders additional environmental analysis of DAPL
Huge jump in production after neighboring well fracked
EOG reports a well completed with almost 12 million lbs of sand

Top Stories for April 2017

With DAPL operational (?), update of Bakken takeaway capacity
Operator considers expanding capacity on natural gas pipeline out of Tioga/Prairie Rose
A recovery rate of 25%?
Airport to break ground next week
Surprise! Surprise! North Dakota production back up over 1 million bopd
Whiting's 15.3 million lb, 50-stage frack

Top Stories for March 2017

Top Stories for February 2017


Break-even costs for sale drop to $30/bbl
New operator in the Williston Basin: Bruin E&P Partners

Top Stories for December 2016

North Dakota was named to the number one spot on Fast magazine's "business prospect list" for 2017
Lime Rock's success with OXY USA wells
Another refinery in the Bakken (Canadian)
Saudi Arabia's break-even price at $92
New acronym in the Bakken: NCW
ND ranked #6 for petroleum investment opportunities worldwide
the breakeven costs in the Bakken can beat those in the Mideast
Worker shortage looming in the Bakken? Update
Overlapping drilling units in the Bakken; operators on top of each other
Oasis with case on the docket for 90 wells
Long Creek update, halo effect
Crescent Point Energy reports a 70-stage fracked well
Another pipeline expansion proposed for the Bakken
BHI will build a new fracking and cementing services company with BJ Services name
US LNG exports continue to surge
First very large ethane carrier (VLEC) launches from Houston
Huge livestock auction scheduled for Bowman, ND, in early January
Mexico jumps to fourth place among world's largest consumers of gasoline
Mexico is now a net importer of crude oil from the US
Record snow in the Bakken

Top Stories For November 2016

Another pipeline expansion proposed for the Bakken
North Dakota borrows another $7 million for DAPL-related security costs
US Army Corps of Engineers closes DAPL protest camp
North Dakota state attorney rules in favor of DAPL 
Sunoco Logistics to acquire DAPL operator
DAPL effect on east coast refineries -- Platts
Bakken 2.0: nine DUCs completed; most are high-IP wells; twenty-two permits renewed
Global peak oil demand won't be seen until after 2040 -- there simply is no alternative to fossil fuel energy
USGS releases new Permian survey, 3x the size of the Bakken
The USGS 2016 report on the Permian
Tesoro to buy Western Refining
Another high-proppant EOG completion 
Another high-proppant EOG completion
Update on a re-fracked BR Sun Notch well in Sand Creek
US Army Corps of Engineers re-imagining the DAPL
The $500 million fertilizer plant in western North Dakota is at the halfway mark
Fascinating -- but esoteric -- look at "depth" of Bakken wells
Mitigation proposal for pressure pulses while fracking neighboring wells
 
Top Stories For October 2016 

Western Area Water Supply Authority -- a huge success story -- celebrates its fifth anniversary
Williston State College extends free college to several more counties in Montana, North Dakota 
Of all the operators in the Bakken, Halcon continues to report some of the best wells based on IPs; one example here
Number of potential Whiting drill sites probably under-estimated
Random update on MRO's mega-fracks  
CLR's 32 wells in "one location"
 31% production increase, average EURs of almost 1 million boe; consistent production increase regardless of fracking intervals
CLR's proposed ten-well Bailey/Wiley pad in Pershing oil field
CLR's proposed thirteen-plus Sakakawea Federal pad in Elm Tree oil field
Monster frack: "propageddon" -- Chesapeake in the Haynesville, Louisiana
A Silurian well goes over one million bbls of crude oil production; still producing after 34 years
Follow-up on Whiting wells that were taken off-line
MRO "re-covers" a lousy well
Three more natural gas processing plants coming on line in North Dakota before end of year
EOG is a winner with a new well design
Shipment of frack sand to Texas sets record
MRO sells assets in west Texas, New Mexico, but not in North Dakota
Results of a re-entered, re-fracked BR well
SM Energy: going longer, not deeper
Why Canada needs more diluent, and where they will get it
Staggering: the building out of US LNG export projects
Ground breaking for new Williston area airport: $2,000/acre farmland bought for $9,000/acre

Top Stories For September 2016 

Bakken losing East Coast market to rising imports -- RBN Energy
Two Williston hotels to close; El Rancho to be sold
RockPile gets bought out, expands 
Bypass around Killdeer, ND, completed
Just how big is the Bakken?
Statoil with 55 "pooling" cases in Williams County on the agenda for October
Operating costs: the Bakken vs Saudi Arabia
Mike Filloon had another update on Bakken mega-fracks
On a single day, twenty-eight (28) permits renewed

Top Stories For August 2016

CLR may have set a world record drilling the longest horizontal using one bit
On the docket: Hess to drill 20 new wells in a 2560-acre spacing unit
EOG will increase production, increase fracking and will do this by NO increase in CAPEX
An update on a spectacular CLR Holstein Federal well in Elm Tree oil field
On the docket: Liberty Resources to put as many as 12 wells on a 640-acre drilling unit
Mega-fracks in the Bakken
Sandpiper pipeline may be dead
Oil firms don't have much cash for acquisitions, but SM Energy bought Midland Basin firm for $1 billion
Best link for the month: fracking pollution story retracted
Although incredibly small, recent acquisition sheds light on the Bakken; Raisa Energy
Mark Perry posted some staggering graphs regarding Bakken 1.0
The STACK is becoming quite extraordinary
The Dakota Access Pipeline likely to be keystoned
EURs in the Bakken approaching one million boe
Dakota Access Pipeline construction halted in North Dakota
Mega-fracks in McKenzie County -- Filloon
Downspacing in the Bakken -- Filloon
Enbridge puts the Sandpiper Pipeline project on hold

Top Stories for July 2016

Bakken OOIP; Saudi Arabia's OOIP; Proved, Probable, Possible Reserves
Possible halo effect on a very old vertical well
The Mergent Group reports that Bakken DUCs have risen to nearly 1,000
An MRO well produced 52,000 bbls in first 20 days
Three new natural gas processing plants should be coming on-line shortly in North Dakota
Random update of a re-fracked well following a failed frack 
The US is coming very close to a new record: more than 10 million bbls/day of "gasoline delivered." Record storage at Cushing noted. There is further evidence that OPEC is severely pinched.

Top Stories for June 2016

Harold Hamm hints he may have a deal with South Korea
From the Williston Wire: FBI office to open in Williston; Tioga airport launches $5.5 million expansion project
India overtakes Japan as the #3 oil-consuming nation in the universe (#1 - the US; #2 - China); the third rock from the sun using more crude oil than ever;
The USGS bumps up their estimate of technically recoverable natural gas in western Colorado from less then 2 trillion cubic feet to almost 70 trillion cubic feet (a reminder that the Democratic presumptive presidential nominee supports efforts to ban fracking
"Iowa" says construction can begin on the Dakota Access Pipeline
Could Minnesota's dithering cost them the Sandpiper?
Flaring: North Dakota meets the target four years early
The Panama Canal expansion
Officials allow Dakota Access Pipeline access under tribal lands in Iowa
Is CLR "up to something" in the Rattlesnake Point oil field?
Just how much oil might there be in the Bakken?
MDU sells Dickinson refinery to Tesoro Corp
CLR to put in 28 wells in one drilling unit 

Top Stories for May 2016

Top Stories for April 2016


Top Stories for March 2016


Top Stories for February 2016 

Whiting and CLR to stop fracking in the Bakken; EOG already had; Statoil already had
Obama declares war on the US oil and gas industry; favors Iran
Is the Enbridge Sandpiper pipeline dead?
US Highway 1804 east of Williston to be widened this summer
CLR lost almost $700 million on bet price slump wouldn't last long
Watford City's new high school opens
Williston High School Coyotes play last game in Phil Jackson Fieldhouse
Random look at possible halo effect between the TFH and the middle Bakken
The Saudis admit their target was US shale 
North Dakota's Triple-A rating downgraded a notch by S&P
Update on drones in North Dakota 

Top Stories for January 2016

Top North Dakota oil producers for 2015
The first ship of US crude oil departed on December 31, 2015, under relaxation of export rules
First ship to deliver US crude oil overseas under relaxed export rules arrives at destination
Third of three US crude oil shipments reached European destinations
CLR proposes 22 wells on a new 2560-acre unit in Elm Creek oil field
EOG's $20 million pad in non-core Bakken acreage
Understanding the Bakken: overlapping units
Majority of Fidelity wells sold to Kaiser-Francis
Record number of births at Williston hospital in 2015 
Statewide, taxable sales plummet 25%; worse in the Bakken counties
Possible example of "halo effect" in the Bakken, part II
Possible example of "halo effect" in the Bakken, part I
Minnesota regulators approve $30 million solar project for emergency power
Electricity down to 3.5 cents/kw-hour

Top Stories for December 2015

Top Stories for November 2015
Evidence of communication between wells
More oil is now gathered by pipeline than truck in western North Dakota -- a first
Increased volumes of fracking sand being ordered from suppliers
Keystone XL analysts need to be looking west, not east
Number of North Dakota millionaires jump
Lime Rock Resources finally posts their Russian Creek acquisition
a birthday greeting to Mr Woodrow Star "A" 1, 57 years young
Katie Ledecky named female athlete of the year -- a three-peat

Top Stories for October 2015
a wildcat natural gas well east of the Bakken  -- a million boe in the past three years
Top Stories for September 2015


Top Stories for August 2015
Top Stories for July 2015

Photo of an 18-well super-pad; also here
Williston's average wage tops $80,000, beating nation average of $72,000
XTO donates $5 million for affordable housing for teachers, police in three Bakken communities
QEP using lot of sand, lots of stages
Whiting to go to 6 rigs in the Bakken; had originally planned to go to nine
Oasis proposes up to 24 wells in several 1280-acre drilling units
Oasis proposes 9 wells inside city limits on east side, near University Avenue
Huge: better and better wells in the Bakken
Completed wells are showing incredible IPs
Seven more completed wells with great IPs 
Four fourth year in row, North Dakota ranked #1 in economic well-being of children
How much fresh water being used in Bakken fracks? 
Whiting reports two more incredible Tarpon Federal wells; 90-stage and 62-stage fracks
All four top Bakken counties in the top ten oil producing counties in the US 
MRO reports great success in re-fracking a stripper well
Bakken is #1 in US for increased productivity per rig 
925 wells waiting to be fracked
The entire 27th week
The octofrac
Top Stories for June, 2015

Mark Perry's 2-part series on visit to the Bakken
Taxable sales and purchases hit new record in the Bakken
Native Americans put screws to pipeline companies
Under-the-lake pipeline approved
QEP to request permission for 24 wells on each of two 1280-acre drilling units
A new term in the Bakken: fracklog
$1.41 million for 22-acre development site in Sidney, Montana
Random update on some great Whiting Flatland / Tarpon Federal wells; also here
Random look at an Antelope drilling unit that could get 16 new wells
North Dakota ranked #1 in 2014 for fasted GDP growth
First drone manufactured in North Dakota rolled out
Dickinson's Menards biggest to date; Williston's Menards will be bigger
Random update, EOG well, 54-stage frack; 13 million lbs sand
EOG reports a 63-stage frack; using almost 20 million lbs of sand
Another example: EOG used almost 20 million lbs of sand in a 50-stage frack; and, a 55-stage frack
US overtakes Russia as #1 fossil fuel energy producer in the world 
Putting the Bakken into perspective: 35 billion bbls vs 7 billion bbls from the North Slope
Fracking has no widespread impact on drinking water. Nada. Zilch. None.
North Dakota has nation's first unmanned airport
North Dakota to spend $40 million on US 2 & 85 between Williston, Minot
Fidelity (MDU oil and gas division) back up for sale
Random update of the three oldest producing oil wells in North Dakota

Top Stories for May, 2015


Top Stories for April, 2015


Top Stories for March, 2015

Top Stories for February, 2015

Top Stories for January, 2015

MDU will delay marketing Fidelity E&P (Bakken acreage)
SM Energy to exit mid-Continent, close Tulsa office; focus on Bakken, Eagle Ford
Amount of crude oil shipped by rail through Nebraska triples
Random update on BNSF expansion plans
18 months in the Bakken -- Vern Whitten Photography
Legislature considering $1.1 billion infrastructure package for the oil patch
Some politicians want a "do-over" with regard to new flaring rules and conditioning rules
Record for number of wells coming off confidential list in one day?
The Williston Wire
Williston Wire
Williston Wire's top ten stories of 2014
 
Slump in oil prices
Articles tracked here
Hess to spend 18% less in 2015 in the Bakken; another article here
North Dakota rig count of interest to Reuters analyst
Permits canceled; producers abandoned
Permits, wells possibly affected by slump in oil prices
A reader's perspective on the Bakken in light of plummeting oil prices
The US is the new "swing producer"
Top Stories for December, 2014


Top Stories for November, 2014

Top Stories for October, 2014

New Madison field in the Williston Basin, North Dakota? 
Update on SHD
The "Pronghorn"
The meaning of "LL"
Enbridge eyes mainline expansion
COP to cut back drilling in the Bakken due to slump in oil prices
A Silurian well hits the one-million bbl milestone
Update on the $4-billion petrochemical plant to be built near Bismarck
Full ride for Williams County high school graduates who attend Williston State College
BNSF will add $1,000/old tank car as a surcharge to push operators to use safer tank cars
Five-year outlook for the Bakken
A random look at the Silurian
Countries at risk; Bakken actually sitting in a nice spot
Williston's taxable sales up 15% year-over-year
$4 billion plastics plant? In Bismarck?
$4 billion plastics plant announcement
WPX names Bakken as one of its key three plays
Enerplus announces two monster wells in west Antelope oil field
Alexander bypass complete
Targa to build 200 MMcf/d natural gas processing plant in McKenzie County
Bakken nomeclature -- CLR

 
Top Stories for July, 2014
Stabilizers: the next big story in the Bakken
Random update on an incredible Halcon well in McGregory Buttes
Legacy Fund to receive largest infusion to date 
Taxable sales and purchases: Williston still leads -- by a huge margin
ONEOK to build 7th natural gas gathering and processing plant in Williston Basin
The boom is here to stay -- at least through 2100; five generations of roughnecks
Whiting to acquire KOG for $3.8 billion; no cash premium; all stock deal
Bakken well efficiency has topped out; rebuttal
Top 20 middle Bakken wells
Million-bbl EURs in the Bakken
Random update: Halcon well hits 156,487 bbls in less than four months
Did Whiting set a new record IP in the Bakken (a Three Forks 2nd bench well)
ONEOK announces new natural gas projects; press release and background
Big fire in Williston; Red River Supply

Top Stories for June, 2014

Strata-X strike natural gas east of the Bakken
Continental Resources to put 56 wells in one spacing unit
North Dakota wells average 100 bopd; the US national average is but 10 bopd
Legacy Oil & Gas buys Corinthian: A cross-border Spearfish play
Slawson case 22272, NDIC order 24606: almost 500 wells in Big Bend oil field
Belle Fourche Pipeline #2, Billings County to Dickinson Prairie Refinery
EPD to build Bakken-to-Cushing crude oil pipeline
Energy Transfer Parnters proposes Bakken-to-Patoka (IL) crude oil pipeline
Largest US fertilizer plant ever gets go-ahead approval; Jamestown; $2 billion
Bakken ethane now reaching feedstock facilities in Alberta, Canada
Discussion of "zones" in the Bakken
The second-largest pipeline (in diameter) in North Dakota ready to go on-line
Hess' Tioga natural gas processing plant is back on-line / Rigzone's perspective
Architect's drawing of new Williston High School
Oil demand in US grew at fastest pace in the world in 2013; outstripped China for the first time since 1999
Dakota Plains Holdings transloading facility, New Town, ND, to begin operations
Williston to get new high school 
$56 million recreation center for Watford City; to go forward with new hospital
Analysts suggest price of oil could surge before end of year (that was before the new Iraqi war)
CLR to drill 32 wells in multiple spacing units in the Oakdale oil field
How good are the Bakken wells? Huge, and getting better
CLR applies for crude oil export permit

Top Stories for May, 2014

CLR's Whitman #2, ($20210) goes over the one-million-bbl milestone
EOG philosophy on re-fracking
Are we underestimating North America's fracking boom?
Halcon reports IP of almost 4,000 bopd; no headline; business as usual
Modeling of the Bakken -- EOG
Legacy fund over $2 billion; $80 million being added every month
Swiss developer preparing to break ground on half-billion-dollar project in Williston
New underpass west of Williston -- graphic
France, UK to run out of fossil fuel in less than five years
Triangle Petroleum acquires 46,100 Bakken acreage
Another huge EOG well in Parshall oil field
Stockyard Creek oil field infill density: 16 wells/drilling unit -- Samson Oil & Gas
Twenty-four (24) permits issued on one day
SM Energy sells some non-core Bakken acreage
Direct Williston-to-Houston, United Airlines
What 1% increase in Bakken production means for EURs
Oil production in Mountrail & McKenzie counties exceeds total production from California or total production from Alaska
EOG to place 32 wells on a single 640-acre spacing unit
Active rigs take huge jump in April
Update on ONEOK's proposed seventh (7th) natural gas facility
Video of Williston's new recreation center

Top Stories for April, 2014
The Torquay (Three Forks) in Canada
Williston Area Recreation Center opens; accolades start to roll in
Third CBR terminal proposed for Washington State coast
Two propane/butane 100-tank-car-unit trains every three days from the Bakken to Washington State
Spectacular Crescent Point wells being reported in Canada
Home Depot joins shale rush -- WSJ
As many as 120,000 wells might be needed in the Bakken; drilling for 60 years
World's largest truck wash is in the Bakken; south of Williston
CLR reports a completed Montana Bakken well with six (6) horizontal laterals
Enerplus, Slawson hitting some big wells; Statoil with another "high-IP well -- almost 5,000 bopd
The Bakken as laboratory: a new secondary containment system for crude oil pads
North Dakota revolutionized the US energy industry -- WSJ
History is made this past week: first BBR unit train all the way to the Gulf Coast
How much is the Bakken capable of producing?
Top Stories for March, 2014


Top Stories for February, 2014

Producing acres in the Bakken going for $40,000/acre
Leasing in McKenzie County: $27,300/acre with a 22% royalty
Random example of how fracking a new well improves production at neighboring, existing well
Another example of how fracking a new well improves production at a neighboring, existing well
New railport being considered at Beach, North Dakota
Another staggering EOG well -- 54 stages; 17 million pounds; 216,000 bbls in less than 5 months
Bakken production: one million bopd as of February 10, 2014
Williston apartment rent: highest in the nation
Comparing the Bakken with South Red River B in the Williston Basin
Tesoro to expand storage, pipeline in the Bakken
Tesoro to retrofit railcars 
BNSF to buy its own fleet of 5,000 new crude oil tank cars with safety features that exceed stds
Bakken oil rolling through New York state
Increasing amounts of Bakken crude reaching California 

Top Stories For January, 2014

Top Stories for December, 2013


Top Stories for November, 2013

Top Stories for October, 2013

Top Stories for September, 2013

Top Stories for August, 2013


Top Stories for July, 2013
Homebuilding on the upswing in Carpio, north of Minot
July dockets posted: XTO to drill another 300 wells in Siverston oil field
EOG's Parshall field on track to generate revenues in excess of $100 million -- Filloon
It's official -- Williston aka "Boomtown, USA"
Is economic value of Bakken natural gas four times greater than forecast?
Zenergy to sell Bakken assets; estimated at $1 billion
Fuddruckers, Acme Tool, Famous Dave's, Outlaw Grill, Home of Economy expanding -- Williston
Menard's to build concept store in Williston, 18 acres of shopping pleasure
Fourteen wells in one section in Antelope oil field
Huge KOG wells in Pembroke oil field; re-entered; late frack
The KOG - Liberty Resources deal has closed; a bit pricier than originally reported
It's official: government says fracking did not cause contamination
Statoil's Beaux-tiful wells in the Banks oil field 
  
Top Stories for June, 2013

Top Stories for May, 2013

Top Stories for April, 2013
 
Developers propose new city at 13-mile corner: "Bakken Village": that area is already more populated than 90% of most urban centers in North Dakota

Top Stories for March, 2013

Top Stories for February, 2013

Obama promises to expedite oil production in North Dakota if "sequester" is killed; [note: the sequester was not killed; the Keystone XL 2.0 decision is delayed indefinitely; what was that about a woman scorned?]

Top Stories for January, 2013


Top Stories By Year

2012

New estimate of original oil in place (OOIP) for the Bakken: one trillion bbls
Well density in the Bakken
Helis
More Bakken oil moved by rail than by pipeline

All the deals (see sidebar at the right)
CLR: one million acres in the Bakken
Chesapeake to leave Dickinson area; may leave Williston Basin
Bakken could produce 2 million bopd by 2025
$14,000/acre bonus: North Dakota state land lease sales results; XOM-DNR $15,000/Acre deal
Monster wells 

2011

Williston Development
Man-Camp Approvals
International
Dollars
Set Backs