For Newbies: Look At All These "High-IP" Wells Being Reported Across The Bakken -- September 4, 2014; "The" Restaurant In Williston

Link here to see several good wells reporting today.

Also, Shell's discovery in the Utica (Pennsylvania) is getting a lot of play. New Yorkers must be going nuts.

I got a late start this morning. I stayed up late last night watching the new vampire movie (2nd time in three days to watch it; will watch it again tonight).

Fairfield SunTimes with photo and story on mega-load in the Bowman, ND, area -- and guess what -- no protestors.

For investors -- this is not an investment site. Do not make any investment decisions based on what you read here or what you think you may have read here.

The market surprised me (again) this morning. Pulled back a bit but there are still going to be a lot of companies trading at new highs. I don't think there's any really good explanation for this market, but I'm sure the talking heads are all over it. Halcon has had a couple of great days. Remember, WTI is dropping in price; the Permian is sending a tsunami of oil to the Gulf Coast. No Bakken crude oil derailment in last 24 hours; knock on wood. UNP is surging. They say BNSF is struggling, causing Warren problems. CN apparently the real winner, financially this past quarter or two.

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Bakken Economy: "The" Restaurant In Williston

The Dickinson Press is reporting:

Since opening in December, the club has gathered 93 memberships, a mix of individuals and corporations.

On the corporate deal, four members of the company are in the system for charging food at the three-chef restaurant drinks at the “Member’s Bar,” and they can bring whomever they want.

“Everybody knows what it’s supposed to be like in there. It’s never noisy, there’s a dress code, and you treat it as… a business environment,” said Brom Lutz, an oilfield consultant who serves on the club’s advisory board.

The exclusivity comes partly from the membership fees — starting at $5,000 for an individual and $15,000 for a corporation, plus monthly food minimums. The $25,000 “founding membership” includes signage within the club, a spot on the advisory board and other perks.

Of course, The Dickinson Press led with:

In Williston, where bars and strip clubs are common, but corporate go-tos like Starbucks are far from the reality, Joel Lundeen saw an opportunity to fill a niche.

I was just in Williston for 7 days. I drove everywhere. I did not see one strip club and the only "bar" I saw was an upscale bar and grill on the west side. Of course, the only two strip clubs in Williston (that I am aware of) are on South Main -- which is now closed off for major infrastructure work. At least I heard there were two strip clubs; there may be only one. I really don't know. I assume there are two. And I assume there the old bars in that area are still there, but wow, if that's the perception The Dickinson Press has of Williston, the editors are missing some huge stories. I guess they haven't seen the plans for Northstar Center -- and that's just the "newest" excitement.

I read The Williston Herald every day while visiting the Bakken; I didn't see one advertisement or news story or gossip column on strip clubs in Williston. 

With all the driving I did, I didn't even see any dust, but then I didn't get farther east to Stanley or Parshall. What I did see, was some huge flares. Huge. Not many, but when I did see a flare, it was huge.

I also saw some of the widest roads that exist anywhere in North Dakota. From a man who should know:

Next time you come here you will be driving on the Watford City bypass, the single largest NDDOT project in its history and for Knife River too. 

Alexander bypass will be completed this year also. 

Then you will find construction at the Missouri River bridge until 2016.

I posted video of the Alexander and the Watford City bypass; they are truly incredible. 

But Williston was surprisingly calm this trip. There are NO MORE TRUCKS on the 2&85 bypass west of Williston. Okay, there are were a couple, but compared to last year and before, when the stream of 18-wheelers was non-stop, there was one or two, maybe. When I mentioned that to Willistonites, they were surprised; they had not noticed. But it's true. Where have all the trucks gone? To the truck reliever routes, the new bypasses, to Watford City area, they are all spread out.

The problem with traffic in Williston, now, is not the 18-wheelers but all the pick-up trucks. And unlike all the other oil basins outside the US, no semi-automatic guns or mortar launchers mounted in the beds. 

Last year, the water depot on the southwest side of town invariably had 6 - 10 trucks waiting to get fresh water to frack. This visit, I saw exactly one truck, and that truck was simply parked there, not getting water.

I was quite impressed: the Willistonites seemed to have weathered the storm -- the boom -- quite well. Now it's one to sustained "manufacturing." A new high school ready to break ground. A new elementary school is planned.