Bakken Fanatics: Fasten Your Seatbelts -- We've Not Seen Anything Yet

"Oil And Gas Investments Bulletin" over at SeekingAlpha is reporting, with regard to the Bakken boom:

A massive, 76-page report from Goldman Sachs from late September suggests 2023 (that's another ten years of growth) with the biggest growth year being next year, in 2014. 

In fact, they say the worst case scenario for the Bakken is now 1.3 million in 2017. One million? That was yesterday's news.

A smaller examination from Credit Suisse in early October suggests the same thing. Analysts from these investment giants went to the Bakken to find out firsthand whether this prime play has peaked. The two groups independently returned with the same answer: "no."

My two cents worth: the roughnecks have the potential of getting 2 million bopd out of the Bakken, but the tea leaves suggest that "North Dakota" is ready to "slow it down."

I think North Dakota will plateau just under one million bopd. Steady production at one million bopd is a nice conservative Scandinavian number.  And I get such a kick out of it. We're not talking about "North Dakota" as far as the actual oil patch goes. We're talking about four for five counties in western North Dakota.

This is a list of counties in North Dakota not participating directly in the Bakken boom:

• Adams (though there are hints)
• Barnes
• Benson
• Bottineau (Spearfish oil, not the Bakken)
• Burleigh
• Cass
• Cavalier
• Dickey
• Eddy
• Emmons
• Foster
• Grand Forks
• Grant
• Griggs
• Hettinger
• Kidder
• LaMoure
• Logan
• McHenry
• McIntosh
• McLean (okay, maybe)
• Mercer (okay, slightly)
• Morton
• Nelson
• Oliver
• Pembina
• Pierce
• Ramsey
• Ransom
• Renville (Spearfish?)
• Richland
• Rolette
• Sargent
• Sheridan
• Sioux
• Steele
• Stutsman
• Towner
• Trail
• Walsh
• Ward (maybe, eventually, there is rumor, talk)
• Wells