North Dakota Offers Tax Breaks To Operators Who Minimize Flaring

BloombergBusinessWeek is reporting:

The North Dakota House has endorsed a measure aimed at curbing the oil industry's practice of wasting natural gas at oil wells.

The House voted 93-0 Tuesday to allow tax cuts on natural gas if it's collected and used for agricultural, industrial or railroad purposes. North Dakota's Senate approved the measure earlier.

If this is the extent of the bill, huge (and great news): tax incentives to minimize flaring, but no threats of increased penalties if they don't  -- at least nothing is mentioned.

An early version of the bill had suggested that lawmakers would change the one-year limit on flaring to six months. I assume we will get the full story when this is signed into law.

A big "thank you" to a reader for sending the article to me.