LIke CLR, Denbury is Increasing CAPEX in the Bakken; DNR Rig Count Down

Link here. 

Increase in the Bakken number and low in the Riley Ridge forecast, which is all positive because that's shifting from gas to oil. Since our operations are starting up well as evidenced by our favorable production, costs have remained on target. In a promising oil price outlook, we've increased our 2012 capital budget by $150 million to $1.5 billion. We're adding about $80 million to our Bakken, a portion of which will fund the fourth rig and a portion of which will cover higher than initially anticipated cost.

That fourth rig? Not long ago, DNR was talking of seven rigs by the end of 2012; they got to five, but are not cutting back to four.  Interesting, and is part of the Bakken trend among major players in the Bakken. 

$1.5 billion CAPEX for DNR in the Bakken? Remember: headlines in major business media when BP announced $4 billion for the Gulf of Mexico. I can't "visualize" a billion dollars, but $1.5 billion and $4 billion seem to me to be in the same oil patch ballpark. I didn't see any headlines in major business media about DNR's investment in the Bakken. 

In its conference call, CLR also noted that it was increasing its CAPEX in the Bakken substantially.