Friday, April 1, 2011

Seven (7) New Permits -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Producers: Zenergy (2), BR, CLR, Hess, EOG, MRO.

Fields: Lake Trenton, Westberg, Upland, Siverston, Big Butte, Parshall, Chimney Butte.

Nothing else on the daily activity report.

But you have to look at the summary of the April hearing dockets just posted. I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E.

More Storage To Be Built At Cushing -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

I was recently told that the reason for oil supplies exceeding storage capacity at Cushing is this: Cushing was built to store oil coming out of Oklahoma and Texas. It was built long before anyone knew how big the Bakken was, and now, simply put, Bakken production is exceeding what Cushing can handle. In addition, to the Bakken, we now have the Niobrara in Colorado/Wyoming.

Good news: SemCrude is going to build more storage capacity at Cushing.

In this case, however, it appears all the new storage will be reserved for oil coming out of the Niobrara in Wyoming-Colorado. 

Data points (some numbers rounded):
  • SemCrude's current storage capacity: 5 million bbls
  • New capacity to be built: 2 million bbls
  • The one pipeline out of Denver-Julesburg, Colorado/Wyoming entered service in 2009; capacity of 30,000 b/d, expandable to 50,000 bbls
  • New capacity is reserved for Noble Energy, Anadarko Wattenberg, and Plains All American.
  • The new tanks should be completed in mid-year 2012.


Corinthian: Souris-Spearfish, Bottineau -- North Dakota, USA

For those who have wondered what is going on regarding the Spearfish formation in northern North Dakota, Bottineau County, here is some interesting news. I recently posted that Corinthian Exploration (USA) had acquired Ritchie's assets in Bottineau County.

In the April, 2011, NDIC hearing docket, case 14561:
Application of Corinthian Exploration (USA) Corp. for an order amending the field rules for the North Souris-Spearfish Pool to create and establish the following 320-acre spacing units comprised of the following narrow sections: Sections 25; 26; 27; 28; and 29; and in addition, the N/2 of Section 32; the S/2 of Section 32; the N/2 of Section 33; the S/2 of Section 33; the N/2 of Section 34; the S/2 of Section 34; the N/2 of Section 35; and the S/2 of Section 35, T.164N., R.77W.; and the N/2 of Section 2; the S/2 of Section 2; the N/2 of Section 3; the S/2 of Section 3; the N/2 of Section 4; the S/2 of Section 4; the N/2 of Section 5; and the S/2 of Section 5, T.163N., R.77W., Bottineau County, ND, authorizing the drilling of a total of not more than 12 wells on each spacing unit, eliminating any tool error requirements and such other relief as is appropriate.
It is hard to count, but I believe that is 20 320-acre units. With up to 12 wells on each spacing unit, that is a total of 240 wells. [Correction: see comment below. Sections 25 - 29 have only 160 acres because they butt up against the Canadian border; they will "only" have six wells. It appears I would have to subtract 6 sections x 6 wells --> 36, for a new grand total for a total of 204 wells.]

Twelve (12) wells per 320-acre spacing unit is fifty percent more than what EOG Canada was putting in north of the border:
First mention of Spearfish for horizontal drilling, February 10, 2010. This thread mentions that "EOG Canada" has put in as many as eight (8) horizontal wells in one half-section (320 acres) targeting the Spearfish.
The hearing dockets for April are incredible. Take a look at the number of Bakken wells they will drill in one section.

Another note from the comment below: EOG said it would need a (an?) EUR of 25,000 to make these wells "break even."  25,000 bbls x $75 -->  $1.875 million.

Eager to see how this all works out.

April, 2011, Dockets Are Posted -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

The North Dakota Industrial Commission (NDIC) hearing dockets for April, 2011, are posted.

This is huge. Look at the number of wells (increase density wells, or "infill" wells) that operators will be putting in each unit; in addition, note the 240 wells Corinthian plans to drill in just a few sections in Bottineau County.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011 (15 pages)

14436: Changing drilling/spacing units in 33/34-152-100; McKenzie County
14437: Changing drilling/spacing units in several townships in Divide County
14438: ERF, KOG, proper spacing for Moccasin Creek-Bakken, Dunn County
14439: Tracker, proper spacing for Wahlstrom 18-1H, McKenzie
14307, cont'd: Urse, temporary spacing for Borseth 15-22 1H, McKenzie
14305, cont'd: MRO, temporary spacing for Watson USA 14-32H, McKenzie
14440: MRO, amend spacing for 4 wells/1280-acre spacing in McGregory Buttes-Bakken, Dunn
14441: MRO, amend spacing for 4 wells/1280-acre spacing in Jim Creek-Bakken, Dunn
14442: MRO, amend spacing for 4 wells/1280-acre spacing in Antelope-Sanish, McKenzie
14443 - 14445: MRO, pooling cases
14446: MRO, amend to allow 4 wells on 1600-acre spacing, Four Bears-Bakken, Mountrail, McK
14447 - 14449: MRO, pooling cases
14450: Sequel, add 2 sections to Cottonwood-Bakken, Mountrail
14451: Sequel, establish 6 1280-acre units in McKenzie County; 1 well each
14452: Sequel, establish 3 1280-acre units Pierre Creek-Bakken, 1 well each, McK
14453: Sequel, establish 1 1280-acre unit in Flat Top Butte-Bakken, 1 well, McK
14454: Sequel, establish 2 1280-acre units in Cinnamon Creek-Bakken; 1 well each, McK
14455: hess, add sections and 1280-acre units to Foreman Butte-Bakken, Mckenzie
14456: Hess, add sections and 1280-acre units to Marmon-Bakken, Williams
14457 - 14461: Hess, pooling cases
14462: Hess, spacing unit for Dollar Joe or Ray-Bakken, Williams
14463 - 14470: Hess, pooling cases
14471: Hess, spacing unit in Big Butte-Bakken, Mountrail
14472 - 14490: Hess, pooling cases
14325: Hess Bakken Investments II, LLC, extend Truax-Bakken; 2 1280-ace units, Wms, McK
14245: Hess, to revoke Sinclair's permit for Robert Peterson 11-3H, McKenzie County
14491: Notice to dismiss Petro-Hunt request for a 1280-acre unit, 1 well, Billings County, ND
14492: Petro-Hunt, 4 wells on one spacign unit in Charlson-Bakken, McKenzie
14493 -  14498: Petro-Hunt, pooling cases
14499: Petro-Hunt, to revoke a permit issued to Zenergy, for Walsad 4-9H, Williams County
14500: KOG, to establish 1 1280-acre unit, Banks-Bakken or Camp-Bakken, McKenzie; 2 wells
14501: KOG, to establish 2 1280-acre units, Heart Butte-Bakken, 6 wells total
14502: BR, a 2560-acre unit for 12 additional wells, Dimmick Lake and Johnson Corner-Bakken, McKenzie
14503: BR, a 2560-acre unit for 12 additional wells; Johnson Corner and Pershing-Bakken, McKenzie (note: there is already a well there; this would be 13 wells in this one spacing unit)
14504: BR, a 2560-acre unit; additional 12 wells, Pershing and North Fork-Bakken, McKenzie (note: there is already a well there; this would be 13 wells in this one spacing unit)
14505: BR, a 1280-acre unit; 7 wells; Roughrider-Bakken, McKenzie
14311, cont'd: BR, 1 1280-acre unit; 1 well, Roughrider-Bakken, McKenzie
14506 - 14507: BR, pooling cases
14508:  Helis, extend Spotted Horn-Bakken, 1 1280-acre spacing unit, McKenzie
14509 - 14510: Helis, pooling cases
14511: SM, pooling in Siverston-Bakken, McKenzie
14231, cont'd: SM to revoke a permit issued to CLR for Koeser 1-11H, McKenzie
14512: Whiting, pooling in Roosevelt-Bakken, Billings
14513: Oasis, unrestricted flaring in Alger-Bakken, Mountrail
14514: Oasis, unrestricted flaring in Cottonwood-Bakken, Burke
14515: Oasis, unrestricted flaring in Robinson Lake-Bakken, Mountrail
 14308, cont'd: Cornerstone, temporary spacing for Paradox 11-16H
14517: Eternal Energy, to extend Colgan-Bakken field by 8 sections, Divide County
14518: Eternal Energy, to extend Colgan-Bakken field by 8 sections, Divide County
14519: North Plains, extend Truax-Bakken, 1 1280-acre unit, Williams
14520: North Plains, risk penalty legalese for Eide 5-13H, Truax-Bakken, Williams
14521: North Plains, risk penalty legalese for Scanlan 3-5H, Truax, Williams
14522: North Plains, pooling Aarestad 4-34H, Wildrose Field, Divide
14523: North Plains, converting a well to salt water disposal, Williams
14524: North Plains, pooling Collyer 9-8H, Williams County
14525: North Plains, drilling a salt water disposal well, Banks Field, McKenzie
14526: North Plains, pooling Wold 16-7H, Banks, McKenzie
14527: North Plains, to revoke permit issued to CLR for Sharon 1-17H, Williams
14528: North Plains, to revoke permit issued to XTO for Wood 21X-25, Williams
14529: Newfield, a 1280-acre unit; 5 wells, East Fork-Bakken, Williams County
14530: QEP, 2 640-acre units; 2 wells in each unit, Deep Water Creek Bay, McLean County
14531 - 14536: QEP, pooling cases
14537: QEP, risk penalty legalese for MHA 1-32-31H-150-90, McLean
14538: EOG, pooling in Rosebud-Bakken, Williams
14539: Zenergy, to revoke a permit issued to EOG to drill Hardscrabble 2-0112H, Williams
14540: GADECO, LLC, to establish 1 1280-acre unit, Williams County, 1 well
14541: Oil for America, temporary spacing for Zastoupil 22-1, Stark County

Thursday, April 28, 2011 (24 pages)

14542: Greggory Task, nonparticipating ownership case involving CLR, in Johnson Corner-Bakken, McKenzie
14543: CLR, temporary spacing for Haag 1X-21H, Billings County
14544: CLR, temporary sapcing for Bud 1-19H, Williams County
14546: CLR, extend Little Knife-Bakken 1 1280-acre unit, 1 well, Dunn County
14547: CLR, exten Leaf Mountain-Bakken, 2 1280-acre units, 1 well each
14548: CLR, extend North Tioga-Bakken, 3 1280-acre units, 1 well each
14549: CLR, 13 1280-acre units, seven wells each, Ray-Bakken, Williams; 91 wells
14550: CLR, extend Beaver Lodge-Bakken, 2 1280-acre units, 1 well each
14551: CLR, 2 2560-acre units; one pad each; "multiple wells from each pad," Stoneview-Bakken, Williams
14552: CLR, to revoke permit issued to SM for Lindvid 2-14H, McKenzie
14355, cont'd: CLR, proper spacing for Northwest McGregor-Bakken, Williams
14356, cont'd: CLR, create a 2560-acre unit; one well pad; 4 wells, Elm Tree-Bakken, McKenzie
14602, cont'd: CLR, temporary spacing for Norway 1-5H, McKenzie
13447, cont'd: CLR, create 2 320-acre units; one well on each, Stoneview-Bakken, Burke
14553: Newfield, temporary spacing for Caliente 1-9H, and Manolo 21-16 1H, Williams
14544: Newfield, to revoke permit issued to BTA for Peterson 20711 1522 1H, Williams
14555: Newfield, to allow Drovdal 150-99-7-6-1H which was inadvertently drilled to close to line, McKenzie
14391, cont'd: Newfield, to revoke a permit issued to XTO for Berg Federal  21X-30, McKenzie
14556: G3, temporary spacing for Siirtola 1-28-33H, Williams County
14557: Samson Resources, temporary spacing for ova 4-9-163-98H
14558: Samson, create 4 720-acre units, 1 well each, Divide County
14559: Armstrong, proper spacing for Patterson Lake-Lodgepole, Stark County
14560: Crescent Point US Corp, extend West Ambrose-Bakken, 1 1280-acre unit, 1 well
14561: Corinthian, create 20 320-acre units, and drill 12 wells on each unit; 240 wells, Souris-Spearfish, Bottineau;
14562: EOG, to extend Kittleson-Slough-Bakken, 2 1280-acre units, 1 well each
14563: EOG, to establish 1 1280-acre unit, 3 wells, Cottonwood-Bakken
14564: EOG, to establish 5 1280-acre units, 3 wells each, Clearwater-Bakken, or the Vanville Field and/or Niobe Field, Burke County
13809, cont'd: EOG, temporary spacing for Lebron 1-01H, Williams
14565: Enerplus, extend Spotted Horn-Bakken, the Squaw Creek-Bakken, or the Mandaree-Bakken to establish 1 1280-acre unit, 7 wells, McKenzie County
14566: Hunt, extend Foreman Butte, Sather Lake, Bear Butte, and/or Buffalo Wallow fields to establish 23 1280-acre units; 1 well each
14567: Hunt, to establish a 1280-acre unit, Clear Water-Bakken, 1 well
14568: Slawson, establish 1 320-acre unit; 3 wells each unit; Big Bend-Bakken, Mountrail (that would equate to 6 wells on one section)
14569: Slawson, establish 1 320-acre unit; 3 wells each unit; Sanish-Bakken, Mountrail (that would equate to 6 wells on one section)
14570: Slawson, to establihs a 1280-acre unit, Kittleson Slough-Bakken, 1 well
14571: Spotted Hawk Development, LLC, to establish 5 640-acre units; 2 wells each unit; Heart Butte-Bakken, Dunn and McLean
14572: Spotted Hawk Development, LLC, to establish a 3840-acre unit; 11 wells on the unit; Heart Butte-Bakken
14573: Spotted Hawk Development, LLC, to establish a 3200-acre unit; 10 wells on the unit; Van Hook-Bakken, McLean and Dunn Counties
14574: Spotted Hawk Development, LLC, to extend Deep Water Creek Bay, 1 1920-acre unit, 6 wells, McLean and Dunn Counties
14575: Strike Oil, to create a 160-acre unit, 1 well, North Haas-Madison, Bottineau
14576: Zenergy, to extend Siverston-Bakken, 1 1280-acre unit, 1 well, McKenzie
14577: Zenergy, to extend Sand Creek-Bakken, 1 1280-acre unit, 2 wells, McKenzie
14578: Zenergy, establish 1 1280-acre unit in Painted Woods-Bakken, 1 well, Williams
14579: Zenergy, establish 1 1280-acre unit in McKenzie County
14085, cont'd: Zenergy, extend Van Hook-Bakken, to establish a 3840-acre unit, 9 wells, McLean
14368, cont'd: Fidelity, temporary spacing for Oukrop 34-34H, Stark County
14061, cont'd: Fidelity, temporary spacing for Kostelecky 31-6H, Stark County
14580: Citation Oil, to convert well to salt water disposal, Bottineau County
14581: Slawson, convert well to salt water disposal, McKenzie County
14582: Slawson, increase density wells (infill wells) within Van Hook-Bakken, Dunn, McLean, and Mountrail Counties -- 3 wells on each 320-acre unit; 6 wells on each 640-acre unit; and 6 wells on each 1600-acre unit
14583: Slawson, increase density wells (infill wells) within Big Bend-Bakken, Mountrail County -- 3 wells on each 320-acre unit; and, 6 wells on each 640-acre unit

14584: Slawson, 1 320-acre unit in Antelope-Bakken, 3 wells, McKenzie, Mountrail Counties
14583: Slawson, increase density wells (infill wells) withing Big Bend-Bakken, Mountrail County -- 3 wells on each 320-acre unit; 6 wells on each 640-acre unit
14584: Slawson, 3 wells on 320-acre unit, Antelope-Bakken, McKenzie, Mountrail
14585: Dakota-3, pooling in Heart Butte-Bakken, Dunn
14586: Corinthian, pooling in North Souris-Spearfish, Bottinean
14587 - 14597: Zenergy, pooling cases
14598 - 14609: CLR, pooling cases
14610:  CLR, increase density wells within Brooklyn-Bakken, 7 wells in each 1280-acre unit, Wms
14611: CLR, increase density wells within Long Creek-Bakken, 7 wells in each 1280-acre unit, Wms
14612: CLR, increase density wells within North Tobacco Garden-Bakken, 7 wells in each 1280-acre unit, McKenzie
14613, CLR, increase density wells within Camp-Bakken in each 1280-acre unit, 7 wells each, McK and Wms
14614: CLR, increase increase density wells within Banks-Bakken; 7 wells in each 1280-acre uni, Wms and McK 
14615: CLR, 2 wells in a 1280-acre unit, Upland-Bakken, Divide
14616: CLR, 7 wells in a 1280-acre unit, Alkali Creek-Bakken, Mountrail
14617: CLR, risk penalty legalese regarding Goodman 1-36H, Squires-Bakken, Wms
14618 - 14629: Denbury Onshore, pooling cases
14630 - 14635: Newfield, pooling case
14636: Newfield, 5 wells on each 1280-acre unit, 2 units, 10 wells total, South Tobacco Garden-Bakken, McKenzie
14637: Newfield, 6 wells on 1 1280-acre unit; and 5 wells on a 1280-acre unit, Siverston-Bakken, McKenzie

14638 - 14642: Samson Resources, pooling cases
14643: Samson Resources, flaring from Ness 29-32-163-98H, Divide County
14644 - 14667: BEXP, pooling cases
14668: BEXP, 6 wells on a 1280-acre unit, Alger-Bakken, Mountrail
14669: Fidelity, unrestricted flaring in Alger-Bakken, Mountrail
14670 - 14679: EOG, pooling cases
14680: EOG, flaring from wells in Van Hook-Bakken, Dunn, McLean, and Mountrail
14681: EOG, flaring from wells in Stanely-Bakken, Mountrail
14682: EOG, flaring from wells in Squaw Creek-Bakken, McKenzie
14683: EOG, flaring from wells in Spotted Horn-Bakken, McKenziea and Mountrail
14684: EOG, flaring from wells in Ross-Bakken, Mountrail
14685: EOG, flaring in Parshall-Bakken, Mountrail and McLean
14686: EOG, flaring in Antelope-Sanish, McKenzie and Mountrail
14687: EOG, flaring from Clear Water-Bakken, Burke and Mountrail
14688: EOG, flaring from Clear Water-Bakken
14689: EOG, risk penalty legalese involving Mandaree 7-17H, Squaw Creek-Bakken, McKenzie
14690: EOG, risk penalty legalese invovling Vanville 6-25H, Thompson Lake-Bakken, Burke
14691 - 14693, 14414, and 14415: Fidelity, pooling cases
14694: Abraxas, 7 wells on each 1280-acre unit, 3 units, 21 wells total, North Forks-Bakken, McKenzie

14695: Baytex, flaring in Divide County
14696: Baytex, flaring in Divide County
14697: Baytex, flaring in Divide County
14698: Baytex, flaring in Divide County
14699: Enerplus, 5 wells on a 640-acre unit, Spotted Horn-Bakken, McKenzie
14700: Enerplus, 2 wells on a 320-acre unit, Mandaree-Bakken, Dunn
14701: Enerplus, 2 wells on a 320-acre unit, Antelope-Bakken, McKenzie
14702: Enerplus, 5 wells on a 640-acre unit, Squaw Creek-Bakken, McKenzie
14703: Enerpus, 7 wells on a 1280-acre unit, Eagle Nest-Bakken, Dunn
14704: Enerplus, 5 wells on a 640-acre unit, Heart Butte-Bakken, Dunn
14705: Enerplus, 2 wells on a 320-acre unit; and 7 wells on a 1280-acre unit, McGregory Buttes-Bakken, Dunn
14706: Enerplus, 2 wells on a 320-acre unit; and 4 wells on each 640-acre unit; and 7 wells on each 1280-acre unit, McGregory Buttes-Bakken
14707: Sinclair, 2 wells on a 1280-acre unit, Robinson Lake-Bakken, Mountrail
14708: XTO, 3 wells on each 1280-acre unit, MonDak-Bakken, McKenzie; 5 units; 10 wells total
14709: XTO, 3 wells on each 1280-acre unit, Dollar Joe-Bakken, 2 units; 6 wells total,

Complete

Zman's First Quarter Wrap-Up

Without question "Zman" provides the best analysis of the oil and gas industry.

His most recent posting, a wrap-up of the first quarter, is superb.

In a fairly long post, these two paragraphs caught my attention:
  • On the international front, supply from Saudi is offsetting supply from Libya. However, a barrel is not a barrel is not a barrel .....
  • Non-OPEC supply probably won't be as resilient as EIA currently expects (up a fraction of a percent this year and then down again in 2012) .... 
I would love to "cut and paste" the entire paragraphs but I think it's better if you visit his site.

With regard to Saudi Arabia, the world my get a better feeling whether OPEC can respond to a prolonged loss of sweet oil from Libya. Already there are indications that Saudi's spare capacity is declining. 

In his non-OPEC paragraph he notes that a) Brazil is too far off to make a difference in the near term; b) Mexico is one day closer to becoming a net importer of oil; c) the UK is pushing the envelope by threats to increase taxes on North Sea oil; and, d) the American "moratorium" continues.

One almost wonders if investors moved the needle today -- oil up over $108 -- after reading Zman's analysis.

When I read articles like this most recent posting from Zman, all I can think of is a lost decade when our brightest engineers could have been working on coal to liquids technology rather than on wind and solar. It did not take computer modeling to understand that neither wind nor solar could make more than a small dent in the world's energy requirements.

Peak Oil? What Peak Oil? -- Not a Bakken Story

Statoil hits another big find:
Shares of Statoil ASA, Norway's largest oil company are surging 3% after the company announced what may be Norway's most significant oil discovery in over a decade, saying it found oil and natural gas at the Skugard prospect in the Barents Sea.
More to follow, I'm sure. 

Dollars For Dictators -- Not a Bakken Story

Remember all that money the US Federal Reserve was doling out through its "discount window" to prevent the banking industry from imploding?
Remember that this administration vowed unprecedented openness and was just awarded the Transparency Award?
Remember the two-year fight that the Fed (i.e., Chairman Ben S. Bernanke) has been waging to keep the list of banks taking advantage of these cheap loans secret?

The list of banks is now available.

As interesting as the list is, even more interesting to me is the fact that Mr Bernanke refused to reveal the list until ordered by the court. It was even more interesting to see who sued under the Freedom of Information Act: Bloomberg and Fox News. Note who did not join the suit: CBS ("60 Minutes"); NBC News (CNBC, MSNBC); or ABC News ("Nightline") -- I find that incredible, and all I can say is "thank goodness" for Fox News.
The Fed released the documents after court orders upheld FOIA requests filed by Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News, and News Corp.’s Fox News Network LLC. In all, the Fed released more than 29,000 pages of documents, covering the discount window and several Fed emergency-lending programs established during the crisis from August 2007 to March 2010.
The Supreme Court ruled that the list must be made public. Now we know why the Fed wanted to keep it a secret. Here's a partial list of those banks and some background as provided by Bloomberg.com:
  • Largest borrowers: foreign banks; accounted for > 70 percent of the $110 billion borrowed during one week of October 29th, the one week that surged to a record
  • Bank of China; China's oldest bank; 2nd largest borrower during a 9-day period, August, 2007
  • Arab Banking Corp, 29% owned by the country we just hit with 120 Tomahawks: Libya; the Arab Banking Corp got at least 73 loans from the Fed in the 18 months following the collapse of Lehman
  • Bank of Scotland borrowed $11 billion; eventually taken over by Lloyds TSB Group
  • Societe Generale SA, France's 2nd largest bank; $5 billion on Oct 29, 2008
  • Norinchukin Bank, finances Japan's agricultural, fishing and forestry coops; $6 billion on Oct 29, 2008
  • Wachovia Corp was the only US bank among the top five borrowers as the crisis peaked; Wells Fargo eventually bought Wachovia
  • Six European banks were among the top 11 companies that sold the most debt overall
  • US banks included JP Morgan, Bank of America, Citigroup, and Morgan Stanley
The icing on the cake:
Foreign banks took advantage of Fed lending programs even as their host countries moved to prop them up or orchestrate takeovers
As far as I can tell, this has not been a story for CNBC.

Other Blog Views

Here are other ways to view the blog:
Each view has a particular focus.

I like the "sidebar" view and the "mosaic" view. "Flipcard" might be the best for a tablet.

Update On Chevy Volt Sales Here -- Not a Bakken Story

Link here.

In Inconvenient Truth: At Some Point, It's All About Coal

Yup, the facts as presented here, have been presented over, and over, and over. This is another nice summary.

1789: North Dakota On Track for 1,789 New Permits This Calendar Year -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Based on number of new permits issued so far this year, North Dakota is on track to issue 1,789 new permits this calendar year.

EOG Converting Shell Creek 1-01 to Salt Water Disposal

From the March 30, 2011, daily activity report:
  • 17058, convert to salt water disposal, EOG, Shell Creek 1-01
Back in 2008, EOG was testing different formations in the prolific Parshall oil field. The primary zone of interest was the Interlake, a couple thousand feet deeper than the Bakken/Three Forks.

Ultimately it was determined to be a "dry" well. It had been spudded 2/08; it was converted to salt water disposal 2/11.

Global Warming Brings More Snow to Northeast Montana -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

I see northeast Montana is bracing for another winter storm. This is, of course, Bakken country.

Meanwhile, here in Boston, I just finished shoveling four inches of new snow that accumulated overnight.

The global warming folks said we would see more snow going forward due to global warming. It's counterintuitive, but so far they've been correct on everything they've predicted. At least according to their press releases.

When I was growing up, we often heard this doggerel, "April showers bring May flowers." I guess with global warming the April showers (rain) that we used to have, has (have?) now changed to something else (snow).

Investors: Government Motors (GM) Double Entry Bookkeeping -- Business 101

I guess this is an example of double entry bookkeeping.

On the government's ledger: "We made a profit on GM." -- President Obama
"American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM,” President Obama said, according to a piece in USA Today last November. Steven Rattner, former head of the Treasury's auto task force agreed, telling CNN in November: “Recent progress at GM gives reason for optimism that it may be possible for taxpayers to get every penny back.”
On the taxpayer's ledger: "We took an $84 billion beating." -- Congressional Oversight, et al
A March 16 Congressional Oversight report, tells a different story. It estimates taxpayers will be out of $25 billion. Additionally, the report points out that “full repayment will not be possible unless the government is able to sell its remaining shares at a far higher price.”

That's only the beginning. Both the White House and the Congressional Oversight report omit the fact that during its bankruptcy, GM got a $45 billion tax break, courtesy of the American people.

Over one year after  the promises President Obama and his administration made about the auto bailout, a February piece on AutoBlog also confirms that GM will also get a $14 billion dollar domestic tax break.

Investors: A Bakken Company With Increased Insider Buying

Over on SeekingAlpha.com, there is a story of seven (7) companies with notable insider buying recently. One of the companies is Oasis.

Oasis has had a number of great wells in the Bakken and seems to be a rising star joining the ranks of CLR, WLL, and BEXP, maybe not in market share, but in relative success in the Bakken.

One has to admit that among thousands of companies out there, one Bakken company was identified, and that company was OAS.

Investors: Two More Bakken Companies With Increasing Short Interest

With the recent "bear raid" on NOG -- providing an entry point for new investors, or a re-entry point for long-term holders and recent sellers -- a story over on SeekingAlpha.com might be of interest to Bakken investors.

At this link, two of the twenty companies are Bakken names: Whiting (WLL) and Williams (WMB). The article lists twenty companies in which there is increasing "short interest."

If I did the calculations correctly, 2.5 percent of outstanding shares are shorted in WMB while almost 5 percent of WLL shares are shorted.

I haven't heard much from WMB regarding its Bakken play after acquiring almost 7 percent of oil acreage in the reservation. A unit of WLL (WHX) took a hit a few months ago after a report was widely circulated regarding the trust. The report noted that the trust would eventually come to an end. Well, duh.

With Active Drilling Rigs Down in North Dakota, What's CLR Doing -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

The number of active drilling rigs is down a bit in North Dakota, down to 168 from it's all-time high of 174 just a few weeks ago.

With that in mind, I was curious to see what Continental Resources was doing. Had I placed a bet, I would have lost. I am pleasantly surprised.

It is often quoted that CLR has 22 rigs -- in fact that was reported in a SeekingAlpha.com story as recently as yesterday.

This morning I see CLR has 23 rigs on the active drilling rig list.

Even more surprising (for me), is that Whiting is up to 15 on that same list, and I think Whiting is getting better wells.

BEXP has seven rigs on that list.

Hess has fourteen, which is in line which I thought they would after their purchase of Tracker and American Oil and Gas. There are still two "American Oil and Gas" rigs listed.

EOG has eleven rigs.

Fidelity (MDU) has two.

And finally, Oasis has six rigs.

High Gasoline Prices Not Having an Effect on Jobs -- CNBC Talking Head

It has been reported often by talking heads on CNBC that high gasoline prices are not having an effect on consumers. This morning CNB's lead-off guest said that high gasoline prices are not having an effect on employment. Expectations are that there will be a good jobs report today.

Oil futures remain "up," pushing price of WTI oil just over $107.

SSN Sets Frac Date for Earl -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Earl 1-13H is scheduled to be fracked April 4, 2011.

It is a short lateral.

In addition, SSN has closed on its sale of  natural gas assets in Green River Basin, Wyoming, for $6.3 million.