Huge Jump: To 50 Active Rigs! -- March 20, 2017

Active rigs: this is a pretty big deal. Some time ago I asked folks if they thought when/if we would ever see 50 active rigs in North Dakota again. The best answer was a reader with some close-hold information suggesting that we would see 50 active rigs by June. I was skeptical; I did not think we would see 50 active rigs in North Dakota in 2017, but here it is, on the first day of spring, 2017, and we have 50 active rigs. Compare to 32 one year ago, and 107 two years. Fifty rigs now easily beats 107 rigs two years ago. 

Active rigs:

	3/20/2017	03/20/2016	03/20/2015	03/20/2014	03/20/2013
Active Rigs	50	32	107	195	184

Two wells coming off confidential list Tuesday:

• 19947, conf, Trendwell Energy Corporation, Matter State 3-17H, Woburn, acquired from Cornerstone Resources in 2016; originally drilled/stimulated late 2011/early 2012; back on confidential status; first IP back in early 2012: 208, 1 stage, 80,456 lbs sand/proppant; stimulated 11/12/2011; followed by second frack, 17 stages, 1.31 million lbs; stimulated 1/3/2012; cum 25K as of 8/16; producing very, very little on a monthly basis through 8/16; Trendwell has two permits in ND: #1147 and #16220, a Madison well, active and in Lignite oil field; Trendwell increased production of the Madison well (#16220) from 150 bbls/month to 1,800 bbls/month in January, 2017, when it came back on line after being off-line for about five months; see this post for more information;
• 32500, SI/NC, XTO, Werre Trust Federal 14X-34AXD-N, Bear Creek, no production data,

Trendwell Energy has been added to "Bakken operators."

Seven (7) new permits (from Friday and Monday):

• Operators: Sinclair Oil & Gas (3); Whiting (3); Newfield
• Fields: Little Knife (Dunn); Moccasin Creek (Dunn), Pembroke (McKenzie)
• Comments: Sinclair's permits are in Little Knife; Whiting's are in Moccasin Creek

Correction to 3-16-17 report: the seven permits listed as cancelled were actually renewed (the data will be corrected at the original post)

Thirteen (13) permits renewed (Friday and Monday):

• BR (7): three Curtis permits and four Saddle Butte permits, all in McKenzie County
• Whiting (3): three Roggenbuck permits, all in Mountrail County
• Crescent Point Energy: one CPEUSC Manchuk permit, in Williams County
• Lime Rock: one State Dvorak permit, in Dunn County
• Resource Energy Can-Am: one Marlys permit in Divide County

Three permits cancelled:

• Hess (3): three SC-Mari permits in Williams County

Two producing wells (DUCs) reported as completed:

• 31288, 903, Enerplus, Ocotillo 149-92-35A-04H, Heart Butte, t3/17; cum --
• 32457, 1,438, Hess, BB-Federal 151-95-1708H-8, Blue Buttes, t2/17; cum --