Updates
September 5, 2013: Chart Industries is now using this old wind turbine manufacturing plant to make LNG pressure tanks to sell to China. I can't make this stuff up.
November 7, 2012: North Dakota wind turbine manufacturer shut its door on election day, November 6 (yesterday).
Wind tower manufacturer DMI Industries Inc. in North Dakota has shut down.
West Fargo's economic development director says the future of the DMI plant isn't known because officials with the Texas-based company that recently bought the plant aren't immediately revealing their plans.
Parent Otter Tail Corp. is selling DMI plants in West Fargo; Tulsa, Okla.; and Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada, to Dallas-based Trinity Industries for $20 million. There were 260 employees at the Fargo plant.Later, September 7, 2012: See "teaser" in original post below. I was going to update that tomorrow, but I could see that it would irritate folks having to wait. So, here it is now, even if not quite ready for prime time. Trinity (TRN) is buying the wind-tower manufacturing division DMI from Otter Tail. When another reader saw TRN, he saw railcars and that was the initial thought regarding tank cars, tying in the fact that Enbridge now uses rail and Statoil recently announced "buying" 1,000+ tank cars. TRN wouldn't have to make the entire tank car; the tank could be made in Fargo, rolling chassis elsewhere, and assembled in Fargo. However, TRN also has one other divisions, including the energy equipment group, that could be in play for the facility. The energy equipment group makes storage tanks used in the oil and gas industry. But, for "anon 1," this division also makes wind towers. If the government extends incentives for wind energy (which is very, very likely), TRN might simply continue DMI wind towers. Regardless, there are other options if supporting the oil patch. A couple of photos are worth a thousand words.
Original Post
Eight (8) new permits:
- Operators: Samson Resources (4), G3 Operating (2), BR, and CLR
- Fields: Ambrose (Divide), Haystack Butte (McKenzie), Strandahl (Williams), and New Home (Williams)
Active drilling rigs: 191 (down)
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I will throw this teaser out, mostly for the time-date stamp: what are the chances that some manufacturer will start manufacturing rail cars in North Dakota? This is not an original thought with me. I have to give the credit to someone else. More details later this weekend.
