183: Third New High in Two Day -- Active Drilling Rigs -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

183 active drilling rigs. This a.m. set new record with 182 and tonight with 183. Incredible.

Here We Go Again: Small Aircraft Manufacturing Debacle --> Small Jet Aircraft Debacle -- What Is It About US Technology That Drives Insanity -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

I won't link this story -- maybe I will -- but some folks may remember the small aircraft manufacturing industry shut down in this county when liability legislation hammered the industry; it has since come back (at least that's my understanding) with liability issue for small aircraft manufacturing companies "rectified." Actually, this site will help remind folks of the history of a small aircraft / small jet manufacturer issues regarding liability and taxation. Of course, the recession didn't help, but my hunch is that the recession was less of a problem than the public perception of the industry as profiled by the administration and the mainstream media. (A lot of companies have done very, very well during the recession.)

Now, here we go again, a tax on corporate jets. Not to worry. This time, if small jet manufacturers can't make it in the US, they will simply go to Brazil (huge aircraft industry down there) or to Japan, and take jobs with them.

Even Warren Buffett has weighed in, knocking the idea of taxing corporate jets. Remember, Warren has a long record of saying that the rich should pay more in taxes.

Don't bother commenting. This is editorial and I generally don't post comments to my rantings. (Unless, of course, the comments point out something factual I may have overlooked, like a typographical error, let's say).

Just a Trivial Observation -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Here are the four wells that came of the confidential list today:

19833, DRL, MRO, Shirley Pennington USA 14-22H, Reunion Bay, Bakken
20212, DRL, CLR, Whitman 3-34H, Oakdale, Bakken
19883, SI, BR, Abercrombie 44-12H, Elidah, Bakken
20178: 2,788, BEXP, Erickson 8-17 3H, Painted Woods, Bakken

What is the first think you noticed?

The first thing I noticed is here, yet again, we have BEXP reporting a completed well, and two of the other four are still in DRL status, meaning that they have not completed (fracked) their wells.

Reminder to newbies: I report results of wells coming off confidential list on a separate page, linked at the right. Link is in next paragraph.

I update the results on this page, so some of these may have been updated from DRL to IP but look at all the wells that have come off confidential list recently (re-printed below), and are in DRL status (even BEXP had one on DRL status) but in general, with BEXP one can count on a) a nice IP; and, b) a completed well when it comes off the confidential list.

• 19833, DRL, MRO, Shirley Pennington USA 14-22H, Reunion Bay, Bakken
• 20212, DRL, CLR, Whitman 3-34H, Oakdale, Bakken
• 19883, SI, BR, Abercrombie 44-12H, Elidah, Bakken
• 20178: 2,788, BEXP, Erickson 8-17 3H, Painted Woods, Bakken
• 19833, DRL, MRO, Shirley Pennington USA 14-22H, Reunion Bay, Bakken
• 20212, DRL, CLR, Whitman 3-34H, Oakdale, Bakken
• 19883, SI, BR, Abercrombie 44-12H, Elidah, Bakken
• 20178: 2,788, BEXP, Erickson 8-17 3H, Painted Woods, Bakken
• 18695, 258, XTO, 101 Federal 21X-24, Mondak, Bakken
• 19878, DRL, North Plains Energy, Holland 9-19H, Wildcat, Bakken
• 18678, DRL, Denbury Onshore, Charlson 34-12H, Charlson, Bakken
• 19799, DRL, CLR, Lakewood 1-20H, Upland, Bakken
• 19500, DRL, Hess, Knudson 15-20H, Dollar Joe, Bakken
• 17979, DRL, Zavanna, Lynx 1-27H, Stony Creek, Bakken
• 18426, 909, Petro-Hunt, Fort Berthold 152-94-14C-11-1H, Antelope, Bakken
• 20180, 327, Hunt, Halliday 1-13-24H 1, Lake Ilo, Bakken
• 19821, DRL, Zavanna, Cheryl 14-23 1H, Glass Bluff, Bakken
• 19715, 1,068, CLR, Don 1-23H, Elidah, Bakken
• 19707, DRL, Slawson, Ambush 1-31-30H, Wildcat, Bakken
• 20196, DRL, OXY USA, Sorlie 160-90-18-P-1H, Dimond, Bakken
• 18828, 1,066, EOG, Liberty LR 16-36H, Van Hook, Bakken
• 20011, DRL, Petro-Hunt, Sovig 150-100-22C-15-1H, Arnegard, Bakken
• 20224, DRL, Hess, Klose 24-1H, Glass Bluff, Bakken
• 19824, 1,683, BR, Ransom 44-31H, Elidah, Bakken
• 19332, 1,105, XTO, Lonnie 31X-3, Hofflund, Bakken
• 19553, 4, MRO, Lucy Fleckenstein 34-20H, Bailey, Bakken (that "4" is taken from the NDIC webpage)
• 19584, 2,192, BEXP, Dave Arnson 8-5 1H, Todd, Bakken
• 19403, DRL, CLR, Vachal 1-27H, Alkali Creek, Bakken
• 19293, DRL, XTO, FBIR Walker 34X-25, Heart Butte, Bakken
• 19969, 356, Newfield, Larson 159-102-29-32-1H, Wildcat, Bakken (north of Williston, southeast of Grenora)
• 19830, DRL, BEXP, Irwin 15-22 1H, Lake Trenton, Bakken
• 19957, DRL, Marathon, Torgerson USA 14-8H, Wildcat, Bakken
• 19862, 86, CLR, Flor 24-19NH, Cedar Hills, North Red River B (not a Bakken)
• 19885, DRL, Hess, Tattu 19-1H, Elk, Bakken,
• 19533, DRL, North Plains Energy, LLC, Hellandsaas 16-8H, Banks, Bakken

Note CLR: six wells on the list; four in DRL stratus (perhaps Eco-Pad issues); one with a nice IP, and one with a non-remarkable IP (but in the North Red River "B" formation). With 20 active rigs on the North Dakota side of the border, one would think one would see more CLR reporting activity. Again, CLR may have many wells that they don't put on the confidential list, and are reported elsewhere, and I may be just missing them. Regardless, four of six in DRL status.

Biggest Threat to On-Going Growth in the Bakken? Competition From Other Areas in the Rockies and the Permian Basin

I'm way behind, so I won't link all the stories, but I've read several stories today about potential competition for oil patch resources: increased horizontal activity in the Niobrara in Colorado-Wyoming; the story I linked earlier today about increased activity in Montana; and a big story in today's news about increased horizontal activity in Oklahoma.

North Dakota legislators need to remember that it doesn't take a lot for drillers to move their operations elsewhere if taxes, regulatory environment, business climate, manpower shortages, etc., do not remain competitive.  One issue in North Dakota regarding the oil industry particularly aggravates me but I won't bring it up now because I don't want to bring up any controversial items for the time being.

Right now, I see the biggest threat to on-going growth (maybe even the status quo) in North Dakota is competition from other areas in the Rockies and the Permian Basin, and the fracking manpower shortage. With the cash flow required to keep operations going, there probably isn't much room for error.

We may look back at the horrendous challenges to the oil industry in western North Dakota in 1Q11 (record blizzards, record snowfall, record flooding) and be thankful for the "stress test" -- much like the stress tests on banks.

COP Continues to Look For Shale Gas in France Despite French Ban on Hydraulic Fracking

Link here.

One BP Lawsuit Tossed -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

Link here.

Halliburton: Fracking Industry Can't Keep Up With Demand -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Link here.

Chief Executive Dave Lesar said Monday that demand for oil field services in North America, such as hydraulic fracturing, continues to grow faster than companies like his can add equipment as producers rush to drill unconventional oil basins.

Halliburton reported a profit of $739 million, or 80 cents a share, up from $480 million, or 53 cents a share, a year earlier. The latest period included a penny in restructuring-related costs. Revenue climbed 35% to $5.94 billion, which set a new company record.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters most recently forecast earnings of 74 cents a share on revenue of $5.71 billion.

Speaking of "PayDay" Loans -- Minnesota's Way To Bridge the Budget Gap

Link here.

The state is still shut down; but the deal is getting closer to being signed. Apparently, it's all about $700 million now for a budget gap of $5 billion. The state is betting on tobacco payments in the future to pay for budget shortfall now. It's essentially the same thing as a "payday loan," something many states find great disfavor with in the private sector.

The deal could cost the state $500 million. That includes interest payments and other costs. So, the state gets $700 million now. But the state will have to pay $1.2 billion down the road.
Another way to look at it: The state takes $700 million in tobacco settlement money, and because of interest and fees, receives only $200 million.

Update on Montana Side of the Border -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

Link here.

Maybe more on this later.

Forbes, Fracking, Schlumberger, Halliburton, Baker Hughes

Link here.

182: New Active Rig Record -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

This is a dynamic link and will change.

Job Watch: Borders Liquidates -- 10,700 Jobs Lost; Cisco Axes 16% of Its Workforce

Borders story here.

Borders Group will liquidate its remaining assets after efforts to find a buyer fell through, the bookstore chain announced Monday.

The nation's second largest book seller currently operates 399 stores and employs approximately 10,700 workers.

Cisco story here.

Cisco announced plans on Monday to lay off 9% of its workforce and to transfer another 7% of its staff to another company in a sale of one of its businesses.

The networking giant said it would hand out pink slips to 6,500 employees, including 2,100 who volunteered for early retirement packages.

In June, 2011, according to the US government only 18,000 new jobs were created across the US, one of the most horrendous jobs report in this recession. Today, we have lost almost that many jobs: 17,200.

New Record: 180 Active Drilling Rigs in North Dakota -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA

I was gone all day; this is the first I've been able to check the news and update the blog. I haven't checked my e-mail but I'm sure someone has let me know we hit 180 active drilling rigs in North Dakota today. When I saw a new operator in North Dakota on the daily activity report, I was pretty sure "we" would have set a new record.

Continental Resources has twenty (20) active rigs but corporate presentations say 22- to 24-rig program.
Hess has seventeen (17) active rigs, which I believe is a record for Hess in North Dakota.
Whiting has fifteen (15) active rigs.
EOG has ten (10) active rigs.
BEXP has nine (9) active rigs.
Slawson has five (5) active rigs.
KOG has four (4) active rigs.
Fidelity (MDU) has two (2) active rigs. MDU headquarters is in the Bakken backyard, Bismarck, North Dakota.

Five (5) New Permits -- New Operator in the Bakken -- And A New Record For Active Drilling Rigs -- Bakken, North Dakota, USA -- Twelve Wells Released From Confidential Status But Only One With IP Reported

Daily activity report, July 18, 2011 --

Operators: Marathon (2); Gadeco, LLC; WLL; and, Resource Drilling, LLC

Fields: Reunion Bay, Epping, Clear Water, and Park.

Resource Drilling -- this is their first permit in North Dakota

• 21171, LOC, Resource Drilling, LLC, Halvorson 14-13 1H

Twelve (12) wells released from confidential status but only four with an IP (most likely due to backlog in fracking)

• 18426, 909, Petro-Hunt, LLC, Fort Berthold 152-94-14C-11-1H, McKenzie County
• 18695, 258, Denbury Onshore, Charlson 34-12H, McKenzie
• 19715, 1,068, CLR, Don 1-23H, McKenzie
• 20180, 327, Hunt Oil, Halliday 1-13-24H 1, Dunn

That's a nice CLR well in McKenzie County. 

And a new record for active drilling rigs in North Dakota: 180.