l tensions boil over - petroleum news · 2 petroleum news bakken † week of january 26, 2014...

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Vol. 2, No. 41 • www.PetroleumNewsBakken.com Publication of record for the Bakken oil and gas industry Week of January 26, 2014 • $2.50

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Whiting moves to ND’s No. 2 ND oilproducer as Statoil tops the IP list

A biannual supplement

AKKEB NOIL & GAS DIRECTORYVol. 2, No. 2 Released January 2014

Latest Bakken O&G Directory

The latest Bakken Oil & Gas Directory is included in this weeklyissue of Petroleum News Bakken. The semi-annual, full-colormagazine is designed as both a marketing tool for PetroleumNews Bakken’s contracted advertisers and as a basic source ofinformation about the E&P companies that operate Bakken wellsin North Dakota and Montana (500 barrels of oil per day mini-mum). The daily average production numbers are extrapolatedfrom figures released by the state governments of North Dakotaand Montana. Although the provincial governments over theU.S./Canada border do not release Bakken-specific information,the largest Bakken producer in Saskatchewan is included in thedirectory, along with other Canada-based operators active inNorth Dakota and Montana. For more information on the direc-tory contact special publications director Marti Reeve [email protected].

Tensions boil overCanada-US strains over future of Keystone put government leaders at odds

By GARY PARKFor Petroleum News Bakken

The United States andCanadian governments

have apparently decidedthere is no more room fordiplomatic niceties when itcomes to Keystone XL.

In a series of terseexchanges, U.S. Secretary ofState John Kerry and Canadian Foreign AffairsMinister John Baird in Washington, D.C., forcedthe issue into its darkest corner yet.

Baird fired the opening salvo by demanding anearly answer — even if it’s a “no” — from the

Obama administration andKerry quickly respondedthat the U.S. will not beforced into short-circuitingits decisions on the pipeline.

Kerry, known for his deepconcerns about the impact ofgreenhouse gas emissionson climate change, told anews conference — withBaird standing alongside

him — that the U.S. public has raised lots of ques-tions and concerns about XL’s plan to delivercrude from the Alberta oil sands to Gulf Coastrefineries.

JOHN BAIRD JOHN KERRY

see KEYSTONE TENSIONS page 20

How much is too much?Montana hopes future federal regulations won’t be a heavy burden to bear

By MAXINE HERRFor Petroleum News Bakken

The future of oil and gas develop-ment in Montana hangs in the bal-

ance, due in large part to how muchweight the federal government willplace on the scale.

Dave Galt, Executive Director of theMontana Petroleum Association, MPA,told Petroleum News Bakken that hesees 2014 bringing challenges that involve taxes,the environment and access to land.

Feds have dibs on most of the pieThe federal government owns approximately

one-third of all land surface in Montana, and with

stringent federal regulations on thatland, Galt said it’s becoming “exceed-ingly more difficult” to explore for oiland gas in the state.

“If you look at what’s going on inMontana production, you’re seeing lessand less development occur, with moreand more restrictions, on federal lands,”Galt said.

What lies on the horizon also hasGalt concerned. For instance, the U.S.

Bureau of Land Management, BLM, draftedresource management plans in 2013 that have notbeen finalized.

“They cover all the oil and gas producing areasin Montana, and they’re very restrictive,” he said.

DAVE GALT

see MONTANA REGS page 19

Endangered butterfly?USFWS seeks comments on proposed threatened species with habitat in ND

By JANNELLE STEGER COMBSFor Petroleum News Bakken

The United States Fish and WildlifeService, USFWS, has asked for

comments on designating the Dakotaskipper as a threatened species underthe Endangered Species Act of 1973, aswell as designating its habit as critical.The Dakota skipper is a small butterflywith only a single annual flight. Theyemerge in June and can live up to threeweeks in captivity but much less in the wild. Theeggs left behind hatch in July and caterpillar lar-vae winter close to ground.

According to the Department of Natural

Resources of Minnesota, the skipper his-torically ranged from southernSaskatchewan and Manitoba, across theDakotas, Minnesota, Iowa and east toChicago. However, because the Dakotaskipper lives in prairie grassland, theskipper has disappeared south and eastof Minnesota.

In the notice to find the Dakota skip-per as threatened, it is noted that “soilsunsuitable for agriculture and steeptopography” allow the skippers to live.

The survey results for the Dakota skipper in thematerials are quite old, many relying on a 1996survey and a selected study from 2002. USFWS

JANNELLE STEGERCOMBS

see DAKOTA SKIPPER page 17

Tesoro’s proposed Vancouverrail terminal remains on track

A court ruling in Washington state will allow Tesoro andits partner Savage Cos. to press on with an environmentalreview of their plans for a $110 million oil terminal at thePort of Vancouver.

Judge David E. Gregerson of the Clark County SuperiorCourt gave a partial victory to the port by rejecting allega-tions from a number of environmental organizations that theport violated state rules when it approved a 42-acre lease forthe project to handle up to 380,000 barrels per day of crude.

The ruling allows the lease for the planned terminal toremain in place pending a detailed review by Washington

see PUBLIC COMMENT page 18

see TESORO TERMINAL page 17

Public to have a voice in NorthDakota’s ‘extraordinary places’

The North Dakota IndustrialCommission held a special meeting onJan. 22 to discuss a draft proposal byAttorney General Wayne Stenehjemthat would allow public comment fol-lowing a well permit application, andsubmission of an impact mitigationplan, from operators wanting to developoil and gas resources within designated“extraordinary places” in the state.

Stenehjem formulated the list ofplaces from criteria he deems important, but understands oil

WAYNE STENEHJEM

http://www.petroleumnewsbakken.com

http://www.futaris.com

2 PETROLEUM NEWS BAKKEN • WEEK OF JANUARY 26, 2014

Petroleum News Bakkencontents

9 Commentary: Whiting No. 2 producer; Statoil tops IP

9 Montana well permits and completions, Jan. 10-16

9 North Dakota well operator transfers, Jan. 11-17

9 Bakken producers’ stock prices

BAKKEN STATS

18 XL southern leg begins Gulf Coast deliveries

10 Montana Bakken oil production by company, November

10 North Dakota oil permit activity, Jan. 14-20

11 IPs for ND Bakken wells, Jan. 14-20

12 ND Bakken oil production by company, November

13 Top 50 North Dakota Bakken oil producers, November

SIDEBAR, Page 10: Top 5 Mont. Bakken oil producers, November

SIDEBAR, Page 11: Top 10 Bakken wells by IP rate

SIDEBAR, Page 17: Legal services provider files for Chapter 11

7 Mountain Divide adding 2 more ND wells

8 Magnolia adds interest in 4 Kodiak wells

DRILLING & COMPLETION

PEOPLE TALK

3 Mixed views on ND O&G development

North Dakota Petroleum Council’s annual statewide poll finds North Dakotans strongly support oil, gas but also see room for improvements

6 Overcapacity of fracking horsepower

Prices for many fracking and completion servicesexpected to remain stable or even fall in 2014; market equilibrium elusive

LAND & LEASING

MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

4 WellStar picks up non-op Bakken interests

Assets include the two tracts offered in ND Trust Lands’recent online lease auction along with acreage in Sheridan County, Montana

COMMUNITY ISSUES

COMPANY UPDATE

4 Alberta Clipper restarted after spill

7 Marathon Oil picks Jones to lead HR

5 Concerns rise for northwest rail hot spot

6 6 Bakken crude cars derail in Philadelphia

8 Koch scraps Dakota Express pipeline

MOVING HYDROCARBONS

Public to have a voice in North Dakota’s ‘extraordinary places’

Tesoro’s proposed Vancouver rail terminal remains on track

ON THE COVERTensions boil over

Canada-US strains over future of Keystone put government leaders at odds

How much is too much?

Montana hopes future federal regulations won’t be a heavy burden to bear

Endangered butterfly?

USFWS seeks comments on proposed threatened species with habitat in ND

http://www.tremcar.com

By MIKE ELLERDPetroleum News Bakken

An annual poll commissioned by theNorth Dakota Petroleum Council

found that at 83 percent, North Dakotansoverwhelmingly support oil and gas devel-opment in their state, but the poll alsofound less consensus when it comes to suchissues as the collection and spending ofproduction taxes, state regulation of theindustry and flaring.

The Petroleum Council commissionsthe annual poll in order to “better gauge”the way that North Dakotans view oil andgas development, and to identify key issuesand challenges facing the state that couldbe addressed by the industry.

“The survey helps us focus on the issuesof greatest concern, and we remain com-mitted to helping western North Dakotadeal with these impacts, whether it isthrough working on solutions to each newchallenge, charitable support for and con-tributions to communities or pushing formore of the tax dollars generated in west-ern North Dakota to be directed back tothose counties and communities to meettheir needs or adding to the infrastructurethat helps reduce truck movements andimproves safety,” said council PresidentRon Ness in a Jan. 21 press release.

The poll, conducted by the opinionresearch firm Moore Information Inc.between Nov. 21 and 25, interviewed 600representative voters statewide and an addi-tional 194 were interviewed in 19 oil-pro-ducing counties, for a total 794 partici-pants.

Industry supportPoll results indicate that on a statewide

basis, 83 percent of North Dakotans inter-viewed support oil development in thestate, 73 percent believe that the benefits ofoil development outweigh the risks. In theoil counties, 72 percent polled believe ben-efits outweigh risks and 82 percent believeoil development should either increase orremain steady.

When asked if oil production in the stateshould increase, decrease or remain at thecurrent level, 30 percent of those polledstatewide support more production, 50 per-cent believe production should remainsteady at current levels, and 12 percentbelieve there should be less productionwith 5 percent undecided.

In the oil counties, those numbers arenearly identical with 32 percent favoringmore production, 14 percent favoring lessproduction, 50 percent comfortable withcurrent production, and 4 percent undecid-ed.

TaxesNorth Dakotans, however, are less unit-

ed when it comes to taxes. When askedabout the level to which the oil and gasindustry is taxed in North Dakota, 48 per-cent of those polled statewide believe thatlevel is “about right,” with 12 percentbelieving taxes are too high and 19 percentagreeing that taxes are too low. In the oilcounties those numbers are similar: 52 per-cent believe the industry is taxed aboutright; 14 percent believe taxes are too high;and 16 percent believe they are too low.Statewide, 16 percent are undecided on taxrates while 13 percent are undecided in oilcounties.

Responding to two views on oil produc-tion taxes, North Dakotans are split as towhether oil and gas tax revenues are being

spent in a way thatbenefits residents ofthe state. The pollfound that 48 percentof those agree thatthe $240 million permonth generated byoil and gas taxes “ishelping people in thestate by funding ourschools, reducing ourproperty taxes and providing flood relief.”Another 39 percent agree that the $240million per month “isn’t being spent in away that helps the average North Dakotan.”

The split is even closer in oil countieswith 43 percent agreeing that the way thattax revenues are spent helps the averageNorth Dakotan, and 44 percent disagreeingwith that premise. Twelve percent are unde-cided on the issue statewide while 13 per-cent in the oil counties are undecided.

There is still more division between the

statewide opinion and the oil county opin-ion about how the tax money should bespent. When given the choice amongschools and education, road and highwayimprovements, and reducing propertytaxes, 29 percent in the statewide poll sup-port education with 21 supporting educa-tion in the oil counties. Statewide, 26 per-cent support road improvement in thestatewide poll compared to 37 percent inthe oil counties supporting road improve-ments. Also statewide, 20 percent supporttax reduction while that number is 16 per-cent in the oil counties.

The results were very close on the otheroptions: law enforcement (6 percentstatewide, 7 percent in oil counties), hous-ing (5 percent each), wildlife conservationand parks (3 and 2 percent), and flood pro-tection (2 and 1 percent).

Government regulationAnd there is more division on oil and

gas regulations. When asked if state regula-tions on oil and gas development are “tooharsh,” “too lax” or “about right,”statewide, 55 percent say the regulationsare “about right,” but 28 percent say theregulations are too lax, and 3 percentbelieve regulations are too harsh. In the oilcounties more people believe regulationsare about right at 59 percent, fewer believeregulations are too lax at 25 percent, and 4percent believe regulations are too harsh.Statewide, 14 percent are undecided on the

l C O M M U N I T Y I S S U E S

Mixed views on ND O&G developmentNorth Dakota Petroleum Council’s annual statewide poll finds North Dakotans strongly support oil, gas but also see room for improvements

PETROLEUM NEWS BAKKEN • WEEK OF JANUARY 26, 2014 3

Responding to two views on oilproduction taxes, North Dakotansare split as to whether oil and gastax revenues are being spent in away that benefits residents of the

state.

RON NESS

see MIXED VIEWS page 8

http://www.lynden.com

By MIKE ELLERDPetroleum News Bakken

New Bakken non-operatorVancouver-based WellStar Energy

recently picked up a total of 1,164 netacres in Williston Basin interests throughtwo separate transactions, one in NorthDakota and the other in Montana.

WellStar was the successful bidder ontwo adjacent North Dakota Departmentof Trust Lands oil and gas leases totaling240 net acres (320 gross acres) with an18.75 percent working interest in anexisting spacing unit in Billings Countyoperated by Continental Resources. Thecompany also picked up 924 net acresthat lie within a contiguous 22,400 gross-acre asset from Vaalco Energy inSheridan County in far northeastMontana.

“This acquisition establishes WellStaras a non-operated working interest ownerin the Bakken oil play with approximate-ly 1,164 net acres,” company President

Andrew H. Rees said in a Jan. 16 pressrelease. “Management is excited to enterthe Bakken oil play with this acquisition.Our model is to build WellStar’s produc-tion base through the drill bit and addi-tional acquisitions as a pure play Bakkenproducer.”

The North Dakota tractsThe Minerals Management Division of

Trust Lands offered the two adjacenttracts in the Ukrania field in easternBillings County in an online auction con-ducted by Trust Lands’ online auctioncontractor EnergyNet. Online bidding onthe tracts opened on Dec. 23, although thefirst bid of $50 per acre wasn’t placeduntil Dec. 27. Two more bids were sub-mitted on Dec. 31 and one more on Jan.3.The remaining 14 bids were all placedon Jan. 6.

WellStar had the successful bid of$510 per acre that came in just secondsbefore bidding closed on Jan. 6, paying atotal of $128,068 for the two tracts. The

acreage is part of a standup 1,280-acreunit where Continental’s Snider-21-H1Three Forks well was spud in November.That well is still on confidential status.

According to North DakotaDepartment of Mineral Resources Oiland Gas Division records, Continentalhas seven wells in the Ukrania field, fiveof which are on confidential status. Thetwo wells on active status are adjacentspacing to the unit where WellStar pickedup its acreage and both are completed inthe Three Forks formation.

One of those two wells went on pro-duction in August 2012 with a 24-hourinitial production, IP, rate of 327 barrelsof oil per day and through November2013 produced 65,846 barrels over 476days of production for a pumping dailyaverage of 138 bpd. Continental’s otheractive status well in the Ukrania fieldwent on production in September 2013with an IP of 412 barrels and throughNovember produced 8,974 barrels over54 days of production for an average of166 bpd.

Montana acquisitionAcross the border in Montana,

WellStar said the 924 net acres it is pick-ing up from Vaalco is prospective for bothBakken and Three Forks formations.WellStar indicates that 13 horizontal

wells have been drilled in the area,although the wells were not identified.

Records maintained by the MontanaBoard of Oil and Gas conservation indi-cate that Vaalco has drilled two horizontalBakken wells in Sheridan County, onewhich is shut-in and the other which isidentified as “producing,” although noproduction data have been provided to theboard. Vaalco is a Houston-based inde-pendent with a focus on offshore andonshore exploration and production inWest Africa.

WellStar said in the Jan. 16 pressrelease that it has retained a qualifiedreserves evaluator to prepare a technicalreport on the petroleum reserves andresources in the Montana acquisitionaccording to National Instrument 51-101,the standard that governs the reporting ofreserves for publically traded oil and gasproducers in Canada. The company saidthat upon receipt of the report, and ifappropriate, it will file for reactivationand graduation to Tier 2 status on theCalgary-based stock exchange TSXVenture Exchange.

Other ND acquisition terminatedIn its Jan. 16 press release, WellStar

also announced that an acquisition of

l L A N D & L E A S I N G

WellStar picks up non-op Bakken interestsAssets include the two tracts offered in ND Trust Lands’ recent online lease auction along with acreage in Sheridan County, Mont.


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MOVING HYDROCARBONSAlberta Clipper restarted after spill

Canada’s national energy regulators are probing the cause of a pipeline spill thatbriefly interrupted the flow of crude on Enbridge’s Alberta Clipper link from the oilsands to Superior, Wis.

The pipeline was restarted Jan. 19, one day after about 125 barrels — although thefinal estimate is still being determined — leaked out near Regina and was confinedmostly to a pumping station.

Canada’s National Energy Board has deployed its emergency response team tomonitor and assess Enbridge’s immediate handling of the event and ensure that peo-ple are safe and the environment is being protected.

Enbridge said in a statement that there “is no impact to the public, wildlife or water-ways.”

The company said it is committed to its goal of achieving “zero spills and will thor-oughly investigate the incident for lessons learned.”

Alberta Clipper covers 1,000 miles from Hardisty in east-central Alberta, crossingparts of Saskatchewan and Manitoba and the northeast corner of North Dakota beforereaching its destination at Superior, Wis.

The system normally carries 449,000 barrels per day of oil sands bitumen and isbeing expanded to 570,000 bpd, with capacity to reach 800,000 bpd, making thepipeline a key part of Enbridge’s mainline that delivers crude bitumen to U.S. markets.

—GARY PARK

see WELLSTAR page 5

http://www.profileproducts.com/bakken

By MAXINE HERRFor Petroleum News Bakken

Anxiety is growing in the railroad-heavy Pacific Northwest due to the

recent trail derailments carrying Bakkencrude in North America. In easternWashington state, Spokane is a busycrossroads where BNSF, Union Pacificand the Spokane, Portland and SeattleRailway routes all converge. It’s also anAmtrak connecting point. With that levelof rail activity chugging through the city,recent derailments in North Dakota,Alberta, Alabama and the most destruc-tive Quebec accident that killed 50 peopleand destroyed more than 30 nearby build-ings, has Spokane officials reviewingtheir emergency plans.

“Safety is my top priority,” SpokaneMayor David Condon told PetroleumNews Bakken in an email. “Preparation isvitally important to managing unplannedsituations when they arise. We evaluateand assess a number of considerations aspart of our regular operational prepared-ness planning. These incidents havereceived a lot of attention and remind usto review our plans and inform anyupdates we might make.”

Legislation to reduce spill risksCrude oil spills from rail are on the

rise. In 2013, nearly 26,000 barrels ofcrude oil was spilled from U.S. rail cars,according to data from the Pipeline andHazardous Materials SafetyAdministration. In comparison, railroadsspilled a total of 18,600 barrels of crudeoil from 1975 through 2012. These datado not include Canadian rail incidents butauthorities estimate more than 34,000barrels of crude oil spilled in the Lac-Megantic, Quebec, accident alone.However, the American Association ofRailroads, AAR, estimates that railroadsshipped more than 267 million barrels ofoil last year, which means 99.99 percentof shipments arrived without incident.

Washington is hoping to be prepared ifthe odds fail them. State Rep. JessynFarrell introduced a bill into theLegislature that would enhance the safetyof how oil is transported within the state.The bill, dubbed the Oil TransportationSafety Act, describes the potential hazardof transporting crude oil and refinedpetroleum products along routes withinthe state, citing the U.S. Department ofTransportation alert issued Jan. 2 statingthat Bakken crude oil is more volatilethan previously thought.

“Washington is a major export stateand that’s a status that we all appreciateand want to protect,” Farrell toldPetroleum News Bakken. “But the land-scape around domestic energy productionhas changed tremendously in the last fiveyears, which is a great success story in alot of ways, but given the catastrophes, wejust want to make sure we are respondingto the changing environment.”

Farrell’s bill establishes measures toreduce the risk of oil spills, encouragespill prevention, and ensure that the pub-lic has access to information about oil

traffic and its risks to their safety. “Since the federal government regu-

lates the rail industry, we’re fairly restrict-ed on what we can regulate, but we canask for a study of our emergency pre-paredness, disaster response and recov-ery,” Farrell said. “There are jurisdictionsthat have really good, coordinatedresponses in place, so preparedness is afairly common sense approach.”

Transparency from oil facilities is animportant piece, she said.

“We want to handle this responsiblyand we’re trying to do that in a way thatbalances the proprietary interest of the oilindustry, yet at the same time provideenough information to have that responsi-ble emergency response,” Farrell said.

Communities need to be proactiveWith greater information, Farrell

hopes communities will be empowered totake care of themselves.

“We have vantage points at the localand state levels that will help us take athoughtful, methodical approach to thesafety of the Spokane community,”Condon said.

In the U.S., 1,400 trains now carrycrude each day, up from just 31 in 2009.BNSF hauls more than 600,000 barrels ofcrude a day across its network and one ofthose trains typically moves throughSpokane. Analysts project that as many as22 full and empty trains will soon rollthrough the city each day.

Those numbers will climb as newrefineries and transfer terminals gear upfor more oil. Currently, the state has threeoil refineries, with two more on the hori-zon. Washington is also expected to housefive additional terminals to receive andship the oil, including one proposed at thePort of Vancouver by Tesoro Corp. andSavage Cos. that would be the largest rail-

l M O V I N G H Y D R O C A R B O N S

Concerns rise for northwest rail hot spotAt the crossroads of three railroads, Spokane, Wash., has been spurred into action in the wake of recent crude-by-rail explosions


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FREEapproximately 429 net acres in NorthDakota which the company had previous-ly announced has been terminated.WellStar previously announced that it hadentered into a purchase agreement with aprivate Colorado firm for the acquisitionof non-operated working interests inapproximately 3,940 gross (approximate-ly 429 net) acres in North Dakota.

However, the Jan. 16 press release alsoindicated that WellStar is continuing tonegotiate “potential alternative acquisi-tions with the vendor.” l

continued from page 4

WELLSTAR

“Safety is my top priority. Theseincidents have received a lot of

attention and remind us to reviewour plans and inform any updates

we might make.” —Spokane Mayor David Condon

see SPOKANE RAIL page 7

By STEVE SUTHERLINFor Petroleum News Bakken

Due to ample capacity, the cost ofmany hydraulic fracturing services

in North America is likely to remain sta-ble or fall in 2014, Paal Kibsgaard,Schlumberger CEO, said in a Jan. 17earnings call.

In fracturing, Kibsgaard said, “there is

still today significant industry overcapac-ity of horsepower, so at this stage we donot expect the market to reach equilibri-um in 2014.”

Kibsgaard said he expects activity,however, to rise.

“For North America you expect solidgrowth in activity on land in 2014 and alot of this is still going to be driven by fur-ther improvements in drilling and frack-

ing efficiency,” he said, adding that heexpects the trends of 2013 to extend into2014.

Technology-driven product introduc-tions are expected to drive effective pric-ing up in North America, Kibsgaard said.

“I choose to focus on North Americabecause this is where I think technologywill have a significant impact in terms ofhow the market is going to be shapedgoing forward,” he said.

“The main challenge in the NorthAmerica land market is still pricing, andwe saw further downward pricing pres-sure in most product lines in the fourthquarter partly amplified by the renegotia-tion and roll over of several key con-tracts,” he said.

Frigid BakkenHalliburton expects its North

American margins to be “modestly high-er” in 2004, Dave Lesar, Halliburtonpresident and CEO, said in a Jan. 21 earn-ings call.

Winter weather has been a challengefor Halliburton in the Bakken and otherareas during the fourth quarter of 2013and the first quarter of 2014, according toJeff Miller, Halliburton executive vice

president and COO. “Switching to North America, weather

related activity disruptions resulted insequential drops in both revenue andoperating income,” Miller said. “Howeveractivity levels were stronger than expect-ed during the holiday season whichhelped to minimize that sequentialdecline.

“Several areas including the Bakken,Permian Basin and Marcellus got off to aslow start in January due to weather dis-ruptions, but activity levels have sincereset,” Miller said. “We expect first quar-ter activity levels to be similar to thefourth quarter as our completions calen-dar is looking very active over the comingmonths; however this outlook is subject toadditional weather delays.”

Pad levelingBaker Hughes is seeing price slippage

in some product lines, and those productsmay see additional price softening in thefirst quarter of 2014, Martin Craighead,Baker Hughes CEO, said during a Jan. 21earnings conference.

Newer products the company is intro-ducing are expected to provide a positiveoffset going forward, he said, adding thatthe “premium is being tested upwards,not downwards” when value is provided.

“So the biases on revenue, to me, areall going in the right direction,” he said.

Technology-driven products may well


MOVING HYDROCARBONS6 Bakken crude cars derail in Philadelphia

Seven cars of a CSX Corp. freight train derailed on a bridge spanning theSchuykill River and Expressway in metropolitan Philadelphia on Jan. 20, six car-rying Bakken crude oil, but none leaked according to the U.S Coast Guard. Theseventh derailed car was carrying sand.

The 101-car train was traveling from Chicago to Philadelphia when the sevencars positioned near the rear of the train jumped the tracks on the bridge in theearly morning hours of the 20th, causing the expressway to be temporarily closed.

In a statement, a CSX spokesperson said the safe removal of the derailed tankcars would involve “the careful and environmentally responsible transfer of oil toother tank cars or tanker trucks. It also will require the removal of sand carried inone of the cars.”

Nobody was injured in the derailment. Philadelphia-area emergency respon-ders, including the Philadelphia Fire Department and the Coast Guard, respondedto the derailment.

The cause of the derailment is not known and the investigation continues, butone local city official told Philadelphia NBC affiliate WCAU that there has longbeen concern over the age of the bridge, which was built around the turn of the20th century.

—MIKE ELLERD

l D R I L L I N G & C O M P L E T I O N

Overcapacity of fracking horsepowerPrices for many fracking and completion services expected to remain stable or even fall in 2014; market equilibrium elusive

“The main challenge in the NorthAmerica land market is still

pricing.” —Paal Kibsgaard, Schlumberger CEO

see SERVICE PRICING page 8

http://www.arcticcatering.com

By ROSE RAGSDALEFor Petroleum News Bakken

Marathon Oil Corp. said Jan. 20 itsboard of directors has elected

Deanna L. Jones to the position of vicepresident of human resources and admin-istrative services, effective Jan. 27. Jonessucceeds Robert L. Sovine, who retiredfrom Marathon Oil Jan. 1 after 33 years ofservice.

“We are very pleased to welcomeDeanna to the Marathon Oil leadershipteam and look forward to the contribu-tions she will make in leading the manydimensions of our company’s humanresource activities,” said Marathon OilPresident and Chief Executive OfficerLee M. Tillman.

Tillman also thanked Sovine for morethan 30 years of “dedicated service” toMarathon.

“Attracting and retaining talentedemployees on a global scale is central toour ability to achieve our business goalsand create shareholder value. MarathonOil has been able to accomplish thisunder Bob’s distinguished leadership,which has been guided by an unwaveringcommitment to our core values. We wishBob and his family the very best forgood health and much happiness in thecoming years.”

Jones, 45, is a 20-year-plus veteran ofoilfield-related human resources organi-zations in North America. Most recently,she served for nearly four years as vicepresident of human resources and chiefcommercial officer for NewfieldExploration Co. in Houston. Prior tojoining Newfield in August 2010, Jonescapped a 20-year career with

Schlumberger Ltd., in the ReservoirProduction Group as human resourcedirector from 2008 until 2010. She for-merly served as vice president, NorthAmerica for Schlumberger InformationSolutions from 2006 and 2008, and inthat role, was responsible for leadingsoftware, information and the company’srelated infrastructure organization in theUnited States.

From 2003 to 2006, Jones served asvice president of personnel forSchlumberger Information Solutions,and was responsible for leading allhuman resources-related activities forSchlumberger’s worldwide work forcefrom its London office. During the pre-vious decade, she worked in a variety ofmanagerial assignments of increasingresponsibility for Schlumberger inCanada and the United States.

Jones holds a bachelor’s degree incommerce from the University ofCalgary, and has completed executivebusiness courses in human resources atthe University of Michigan and infinance at the IMD Business School inLausanne, Switzerland. l


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COMPANY UPDATEMountain Divide adding 2 more ND wells

Montana-based Mountain View Energy’s subsidiary Mountain Divide hasdrilled two additional Three Forks formation wells in its 12 Gauge project inDivide County, N.D., and preparation is under way for completing both wells. TheReistad 23-14-1H and Reistad 26-35S-1H bring to eight the number of wells thecompany has in its 12 Gauge project.

Mountain Divide reports it has also increased its working interest in the twowells. The company’s working interest in the Reistad 23 well increased from 67 to92.5 percent and from 78 to 99.2 percent in the Reistad 26 well.

“We are pleased that both wells were successfully drilled safely, efficiently andunder budget, indicating that our operational experience gained from the firstwells in the program has led to cost efficiencies on current wells,” Mountain ViewPresident Patrick Montalban said in a Jan. 14 press release. “The ability toincrease our working interest in this prospective acreage is a positive transactionfor the Company and we look forward to the upcoming fracture stimulation oper-ations.”

The two Reistad wells were drilled by Calgary-based Ensign Energy’s 118 rig,which is the first “skidable” rig that Mountain Divide has used on its first multi-well pad. The two Reistad wells will be fracked simultaneously with 32 plug-and-perf stages each.

Other Mountain Divide wellsAll eight wells in Mountain Divide’s 12 Gauge project are in or near the

Fortuna field in northwest Divide County, and all target the Three Forks forma-tion. Some of those wells are still on confidential status, but five of the 12 Gaugewells are on active status and went on production between February and October,2013. Three of the five active wells went on production in February, March andApril with 24-hour initial production, IP, rates ranging from 341 to 470 barrels perday. Though November, those three wells have had average daily production ratesof between 205 and 207 bpd.

The other two wells on active status went on production in September andOctober with 24-hour IPs of 480 and 456 bpd. Through November, productionfrom those two wells has averaged 318 and 429 bpd.

Montalban told Petroleum News Bakken in November that while the Bakkenformation is prospective in northwest Divide County, the Three Forks formationhas proven a better prospect. Those wells have a flatter decline curve, and wellscost less because the Three Forks is shallower in that region.

Oil and Gas Division records also indicate that in November, the most recentmonth for which total production data are available, Mountain Divide ranked 37thamong the top 50 oil producers in the state based on non-confidential, operatedwells producing an average of 894 bpd.

—MIKE ELLERD

l P E O P L E T A L K

Marathon Oil picksJones to lead HRNew vice president brings with her nearly 24 years of seniorexecutive experience: 20 with Schlumberger, four with Newfield

People Talk

oil terminal in the Northwest (seestory on page 1).

Spokane officials feel their com-munity needs to be protected. CityCouncil President Ben Stuckart toldthe city’s local newspaper that hewants the City Council to have avoice in state approval of new refiner-ies and terminals and also push forstronger federal rail safety regula-tions.

The rail industry recently urgedfederal regulators to toughen existingstandards for new tank cars andrequire that existing tank cars used totransport flammable liquids, includ-ing crude oil, be retrofitted withadvanced safety-enhancing technolo-gies or, if not upgraded, phased out.

On Jan. 16, TransportationSecretary Anthony Foxx met with railand oil industry representatives todiscuss changes in tank car design,traveling speeds, and routes. Foxxsaid the changes would be announcedin the next 30 days. l


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MERGERS & ACQUISITIONSMagnolia adds interest in 4 Kodiak wells

Oklahoma-based Magnolia Petroleum has added four more Bakken wells to itsportfolio of non-operated Williston Basin assets, those being four Kodiak Oil andGas-operated wells in the South Fork field in northeast Dunn County. Two of thewells will target the Bakken formation and two the Three Forks formation.

In a Jan. 20 press release, Magnolia says that the four new wells are to be drilledon the same spacing unit as two other Kodiak wells in which Magnolia has an inter-est. One of those wells, the Skunk Creek 2-8-17-15H , a Three Forks formationwell, went on production in January 2012 with 24-hour initial production, IP, rateof 2,303 barrels per day.

“Though it has since been superseded, notably by four of the six Statoil operat-ed Jake wells in North Dakota, at 2,303 bopd, the initial production rate for theSkunk Creek 15H well was, at the time, our best ever,” said Magnolia ChiefOperating Officer Rita Whittington in the Jan. 20 press release.

The “Jake” wells to which Whittington refers are six wells by that name in theLast Chance field in southwest Williams County, all in which Magnolia holds aninterest. Those six wells had 24-hour IPs ranging from 2,320 bpd to 3,606 bpd withan average of 2,758 bpd.

Magnolia also participates in wells operated by Marathon Oil. In June and Julyof 2013, Magnolia released production results from two of the Marathon-operatedwells Magnolia participates in, the Gustafson 31-30H and the Helgeson 41-30H,both in the Bailey field in central Dunn County. Those two wells had 24-hour IPsof 1,216 and 1,401 bpd, respectively.

“In addition, these four new infill wells serve as a reminder that in North Dakotait is accepted practice to drill a total of four wells per formation on each spacingunit in order to maximize the recovery of the reserves,” Whittington said. “As theThree Forks Sanish lies below the Bakken formation, there is therefore the poten-tial for eight wells to be drilled per unit on all our leases in North Dakota, includ-ing the Jake wells and the Marathon operated Gustafson and Helgeson wells.”

In addition to its non-operated acreage in North Dakota, Magnolia also holdsapproximately 7,600 acres in northeast Montana, most of which is in DanielsCounty. Although a non-operator in the Williston Basin, Magnolia does have oper-ations in the Mississippi Lime and Woodford/Hunton plays in Oklahoma.

—MIKE ELLERD

MOVING HYDROCARBONSKoch scraps Dakota Express pipeline

Wichita-based Koch Pipeline Co. is shelving its plans to build the Dakota Expresspipeline that would have moved Bakken crude oil from western North Dakota to crudeoil terminalling hubs in Illinois.

Bloomberg reported on Jan. 21 a Koch Industries spokesperson as saying that KochPipeline Co. is no longer developing the Dakota Express pipeline did not offer a rea-son. As Petroleum News Bakken reported inJuly 2013, Koch Pipeline was to begin a 45-dayopen season on July 1, 2014, but Bloombergquotes the Koch spokesperson as saying the“non-binding open season for the DakotaExpress pipeline is no longer being pursued.”

The Dakota Express was to involve construc-tion of a new pipeline as well as reversal of anexisting line between Saint Paul, Minn., andHartford, Ill. It would have the capacity to shipapproximately 250,000 barrels of oil per day. Had the project proceeded, service wouldhave begun in 2016. Koch was also planning to explore connecting the Dakota Expressto Energy Transfer’s proposed Eastern Gulf Crude Access Pipeline, a project proposedto transport crude oil from the Patoka, Ill., hub south to eastern Gulf Coast refineries.

However, as Petroleum News Bakken reported Jan. 12, the Eastern Gulf Coast proj-ect, which is a joint venture between Energy Transfer Partners and Enbridge, is still inthe works and is planned to transport up to 600,000 barrels of Canadian and Bakkencrude to the Eastern Gulf Coast refinery region.

—MIKE ELLERD

regulation issue and in oil counties 13 per-cent are undecided.

The views on regulations haven’tchanged significantly over the last threeyears. In 2012, 61 percent of those polledstatewide thought the regulations wereabout right while 26 percent felt theywere too lax and 4 percent thought theywere too harsh. In the oil counties thosethree numbers were 67, 23 and 4 percent,respectively.

In 2011, 57 percent of people polledboth statewide and in the oil counties feltregulations were about right, while 26percent statewide and 28 percent in oilcounties thought regulations were too lax.Statewide, 4 percent felt regulations weretoo harsh in 2011, while that number in

oil counties was 3 percent.

FlaringNorth Dakotans are also divided on flar-

ing, with only 55 percent of those polledstatewide agreeing that the current level ofoil and gas should be maintained despiteflaring in order to support job growth and astrong economy, and 34 percent agreeingthat the level of oil and gas developmentshould be reduced in order to cut down onflaring until there is sufficient gas gatheringinfrastructure to keep pace with production.

In the oil counties the numbers are near-ly identical to the statewide results with 56percent supporting the current level of pro-duction despite flaring and 35 percentfavoring a production decrease to reduceflaring. l


MIXED VIEWS

The Dakota Express was toinvolve construction of a newpipeline as well as reversalof an existing line between

Saint Paul, Minn., andHartford, Ill.

be the next efficiency frontier, as rapidgains realized from pad drilling level out.

Baker Hughes research of industry-wide trends indicates that in the Bakkenand the Eagle Ford, approximately half ofthe wells drilled in 2012 and 2013 werehorizontal, Craighead said.

In 2012, 40 percent of horizontal wellswere on a pad; in 2013, 50 percent to 60percent of the horizontal wells were on

pads, he said. “You can’t keep going up50 percent every year.”

“I think on multiple fronts, I don’t careif it’s the drilling, the completions, thepad drilling — this efficiency curve isflatlining for our customers — and you’renot going to get every horizontal well offof a pad,” Craighead said. “So if we sit at60 percent today, let’s say next year wemay get to 80 percent; I don’t know howmuch more you can get past that.” l


SERVICE PRICING

C O M P A N Y U P D A T E

A S S O C I A T I O N S

L A N D & L E A S I N G

Vol. 1, No. 21 • www.PetroleumNewsBakken.com A semi-monthly newspaper for industry and government February 17, 2013

Crude on rails in for long haul

VERN

WHI

TTEN

PHO

TOG

RAPH

Y

Plains All American’s Manitou crude oil and NGL rail facility nearRoss, west of Stanley in Mountrail County, North Dakota. Phototaken this winter by Vern Whitten. See rail story below.

WLL gets bum rapJames. T. Brown: Whiting Petroleum is not running out of drilling inventory

By RAY TYSONPetroleum News Bakken

Denver-based E&P independentWhiting Petroleum Corp. is finding

it difficult convincing investors that thecompany is not running out of suitableplaces to drill.

“The knock against Whiting is that youguys don’t have any inventory and in threeyears you’re going to be done,” James T.Brown, Whiting’s president and chief operating offi-cer, told industry analysts Feb. 6 at the Credit Suisse2013 Energy Summit in Vail, Colo.

The lack-of-inventory perception seems to be par-

ticularly acute when it comes to findingnew targets in Whiting’s flagship Sanishfield in North Dakota’s Williston Basin,which accounts for around 30,000 barrelsper day, or nearly 40 percent of the compa-ny’s roughly 80,000 barrels per day of pro-duction.

By the end of 2012, a total of about 300production wells had been drilled in theSanish field, with at least another 200 to bedrilled and completed.

“It seems that when we get to the end of everyyear, we have two-and-half to three years of drilling

Riverbed draws top bidsQEP Energy high bidder on 22 Missouri River leases; shore zone included

By MIKE ELLERDFor Petroleum News Bakken

A total of 27,370 acreswere leased in 306 tracts

in nine western North Dakotacounties in the Feb. 5 NorthDakota Department of TrustLands oil and gas lease auctionbringing in a total of$24,609,206 at an averageprice of $899 per acre. The auction was dominated bytracts between the former high water marks on thetwo banks of the Missouri River under LakeSakakawea in Dunn County.

Of the 27,370 acres leased, slightly less than one-

third or 9,900 acres were in106 Missouri riverbed tracts inDunn County and those tractsbrought in a total $21,227,455,a sum that accounted for morethan 86 percent of the grossauction proceeds.

The Dunn County leaseactivity was, in turn, dominat-ed by 22 Missouri riverbedtracts totaling 1,465 acres that

fetched a total of $16,536,197 at an average price of$11,291 per acre, all purchased by Denver-basedQEP Energy Co.

Galt: MPA ever vigilantMontana Petroleum Association chief keeps tabs on several bills during session

see WHITING INVENTORY page 18

LANCE GAEBE DREW COMBS

see ND LEASE AUCTION page 21

By MIKE ELLERDFor Petroleum News Bakken

Numerous oil and gas-related billshave been introduced thus far in the

63rd session of the Montana legislaturecurrently in session in Helena, and whileMontana Petroleum Association ExecutiveDirector Dave Galt follows all of themclosely, he recently spoke with PetroleumNews Bakken and discussed those that hethinks are most important to his membership.

The key bills Galt identified fall into a variety ofcategories. Some deal with compensation forlandowner surface damage, eminent domain andforced pooling, all of which Galt lumps together intowhat he considers to be “property rights” legislation.Other bills that Galt considers key deal with taxation,

temporary leasing of water rights, financialrelief to oil and gas-impacted communities,and carbon sequestration and enhanced oilrecovery using carbon dioxide.

Property rights: surface damage compensation

House Bill 431, introduced by Rep.Austin Knudsen of Culbertson, is a surfacedamage compensation bill that would addto the existing oil and gas surface damage

and disruption compensation statue the definition of“lost land value” as “the value of the highest and bestreasonably available use, including the proposed use.”The bill would also require that the surface owner andthe oil and gas developer or operator attempt “in good

DAVE GALT

see ENERGY LEGISLATION page 22

Rail will survive pipeline additionsThe need for rail to move crude from

Midcontinent fields will likely persist,even if plans for expanding pipelinelinks from the Bakken to the Gulf Coastgo ahead, EOG Resources ChiefExecutive Officer Mark Papa told aColorado conference.

He said rail will still be used fiveyears from now to deliver Bakken crudeto all three Lower 48 coasts — the Gulf,East and West — but expects the cur-rent advantage of Louisiana Light Sweet, LLS, crude pricesin the Houston market will probably change within 18

Bakken threatens Alberta upgraderThe Bakken might be about to register a friendly-fire vic-

tim — a C$11.6 billion Suncor Energy upgrader to convert oilsands bitumen into synthetic crude for refining into fuels.

Suncor, with France’s Total as a 49 percent partner, expectsto decide no later than March 31 on the immediate fate of itsVoyageur project, which has been in a holding pattern for thelast four years, putting an end to its original startup date of2016.

Since taking control of the oil sands giant nine monthsago, Suncor Chief Executive Officer Steve Williams hasincreasingly hinted that economic challenges could be theundoing of Voyageur.

His explanation has been delivered in clear-cut terms.

Helms slams U.S. Fish & Wildlife Two new slides have appeared in

Lynn Helms’ presentation packet —slides with information that he thinksindicate an attempt bythe U.S. Fish & WildlifeService to take over oiland gas permitting inNorth Dakota.

One is a map backing up his agency’srecent analysis that shows 83 percent ofNorth Dakota’s oil and gas spacing unitshave some federal land ownership, surface and/or minerals.

Helms, director of the North Dakota IndustrialCommission’s Department of Minerals, Oil and Gas Division,told North Dakota lawmakers in January, “It was really sur-prising to me when we did this analysis to find out that 83

see RAIL SURVIVAL page 24

MARK PAPA

see ALBERTA UPGRADER page 24

see PERMITTING page 10

JAMES T. BROWN

LYNN HELMS

page6

Senate majority leader weighs in onNorth Dakota oil, gas legislation GET THE

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BAKKENStatsMontana well permits and completionsJanuary 10—16, 2014

COMPILED BY DARRYL L. FLOWERSFor Petroleum News Bakken

CompletionsIn Richland County, four Bakken for-

mation wells were reported as completed.

Whiting Oil and Gas Corp. reported

the completion of the Sundheim 31-2-1H,

which has an SHL at NE 2-25N-57E (280

FNL/2400 FEL) and a BHL of 20,950

feet at SW SW 11-25N-57E (273

FSL/765 FWL). The Sundheim reported

an IP of 1,021 BOPD, 431 MCFPD of gas

and 2,593 BWPD.

The three remaining Richland County

completions are wells operated by

Continental Resources Inc.

Continental’s Fitzsimons 1-26H has an

SHL at NE NW 26-23N-54E (260

FNL/2165 FWL) and three laterals with

BHLs of 11,751 feet at SE NW 26-23N-

54E (2215 FNL/1984 FWL); 12,020 feet

at SE NW 26-23N-54E (2481 FNL/1959

FWL); and 14,591 feet at SE SW 26-23N-

54E (231 FSL/1970 FWL). The reported

IP was 147 BOPD, 91 MCFPD of gas and

222 BWPD.

The Thomas-Bettye HSU has an SHL

at SE SE 27-23N-56E (275 FSL/355

FEL) and a BHL of 20,318 feet at NW

NW 23-23N-56E (236 FNL/29 FWL) and

reported an IP of 315 BOPD, 92 MCFPD

of gas and 37 BWPD.

The Jeanette 3-14H has an SHL at SE

SW 14-23N-54E (260 FSL/2225 FWL)

and a BHL of 19,895 feet at NE NW 11-

23N-54E (224 FNL/1935 FWL) and

reported an IP of 525 BOPD, 298

MCFPD of gas and 533 BWPD.

Expired permitsIn Roosevelt County, the permit for the

Star Coulee 3-1720H, operated by EOG

Resources Inc., expired. The Star Coulee

had an SHL at NW NE 17-27N-58E (200

FNL/1575 FEL) and was permitted to the

Bakken formation.

Converted to injectionIn Richland County, the Staci 3-11H,

operated by Continental Resources Inc.

was approved for injection. The Staci pro-

duces from the Bakken formation and has

an SHL at NE NW 11-23N-55E (330

FNL/1700 FWL). ●

Editor’s note: Darryl L. Flowers, acontributor to Petroleum News Bakken,is the publisher of the Fairfield SunTimes in Fairfield, Mont., www.fairfield-suntimes.com, and can be reached [email protected]. Theinformation is derived from the onlinerecords of the Montana Board of Oil &Gas Conservation Commission.

Abbreviations & parametersWith a few exceptions, the Montana weekly oil activity report includes horizontal well activity in

the Bakken petroleum system in the eastern/northeastern part of the state within the Williston Basin. It

also includes the Heath play and what is referred to as the South Alberta Bakken fairway in northwest-

ern/west-central Montana, which is at least 175 miles long (north-south) and 50 miles wide (east-west),

extending from southern Alberta, where the formation is generally referred to as the Exshaw, south-

wards through Montana’s Glacier, Toole, Pondera, Teton and Lewis & Clark counties. The Southern

Alberta Bakken, under evaluation by several oil companies, is not part of the Williston Basin.

Following are the abbreviations used in the report and what they mean.

BHL: bottomhole location | BOPD: barrels of oil per day | BWPD: barrels of water per day

IP: initial production | MCFPD: thousand cubic feet per day | PBHL: probable bottomhole location

PD: proposed depth | SHL: surface hole location | TD: total depth

And public land survey system abbreviations:

FNL = from north line | FEL = from east line | FSL = from south line | FWL = from west line

Company Exchange Symbol Closing price Previous Wed.

Abraxas Petroleum Corporation NASDAQ AXAS $3.26 $3.11

American Eagle Energy Corporation OTC AMZG $2.04 $1.78

Arsenal Energy USA, Inc. TSE AEI $5.02 $5.13

Baytex Energy USA Ltd NYSE BTE $37.64 $36.59

Burlington Resources Co., LP (ConocoPhillips) NYSE COP $68.37 $68.08

Continental Resources, Inc. NYSE CLR $112.45 $108.56

Crescent Point Energy US Corporation TSE CPG $39.83 $39.39

Denbury Onshore, LLC NYSE DNR $16.57 $16.49

Emerald Oil, Inc. NYSEMKT EOX $7.79 $7.46

Enerplus Resources USA Corporation NYSE ERF $18.48 $17.76

EOG Resources, Inc. NYSE EOG $171.72 $170.36

Fidelity Exploration & Production (MDU) NYSE MDU $31.43 $30.58

GMX Resources, Inc. PINK GMXRQ $0.09 $0.10

Halcon Resources NYSE HK $3.57 $3.34

Hess Corporation NYSE HES $78.12 $77.67

Kodiak Oil and Gas (USA), Inc. NYSE KOG $11.45 $10.83

Legacy Reserves Operating LP NASDAQ LGCY $27.92 $28.11

Marathon Oil Company NYSE MRO $34.40 $34.01

Mountain Divide, LLC (Mountainview Energy) CVE MVW.V $0.49 $0.52

Newfield Production Company NYSE NFX $25.92 $25.28

Northern Oil and Gas NYSE NOG $15.10 $14.03

Oasis Petroleum North America NYSE OAS $44.60 $43.75

Oxy USA, Inc. (Occidental Petroleum) NYSE OXY $90.96 $91.46

PetroShale Inc. CVE PSH $1.38 $1.34

QEP Energy Company NYSE QEP $31.30 $29.70

Resolute Natural Resources Company, LLC NYSE REN $8.93 $8.43

Samson Resources Company (KKR & Co) NYSE KKR $26.30 $25.75

SM Energy Company NYSE SM $87.58 $84.87

Statoil Oil and Gas LP NYSE STO $24.94 $24.94

Triangle USA Petroleum Corporation NYSE TPLM $8.88 $8.13

Whiting Oil and Gas Corporation NYSE WILL $61.51 $59.73

WPX Energy Williston, LLC NYSE WPX $19.95 $19.01

XTO Energy, Inc. (ExxonMobil) NYSE XOM $97.88 $98.78

Bakken producers’ stock pricesClosing prices as of Jan.22along with those from previous Wednesday

BAKKEN STATS COMMENTARYWhiting No. 2 producer; Statoil tops IP

Whiting Oil and Gas reclaimed the No. 2 position among North Dakota’s top

50 oil producers in November, pushing Hess Corp. into the No. 3 spot but by the

slimmest of margins (page 13). Whiting’s daily production in November averaged

74,205 barrels per day, 8 bpd more that Hess’s average daily production of 74,197

bpd. Continental Resources held on strong to its No. 1 spot with an average daily

production of 81,758 bpd.

Among the top 10 oil producers, EOG Resources held its No. 4 position with

56,998 bpd, but Statoil Oil and Gas moved up one place to the No. 5 spot with

54,971 bpd, replacing XTO Energy which fell to the No. 6 spot at 51,585 bpd.

Burlington Resources replaced Kodiak Oil and Gas in the No. 7 spot at 43,877

bpd, and Kodiak moved down to the No. 10 spot at 41,201 bpd. Oasis Petroleum

moved up two slots to the No. 8 position with 42,648 bpd. Marathon Oil held its

No. 9 position with 41,339 bpd.

Statoil tops IP listStatoil Oil and Gas had the highest 24-hour initial production, IP, for the week

of Jan. 14-20 at 4,884 barrels from one of its Banks field wells (page 11), not far

off the record high IP of 5,417, which Statoil holds for another Banks field well.

Statoil also had the second and third highest IP wells for the week with a

Sandrocks field well in second with 3,358 barrels, and another Banks field well

third at 3,099 barrels. The Banks field is in far north-central McKenzie County.

The Sandrocks field lies to the southwest toward central McKenzie County.

Other operators with wells on the Top 10 list are Burlington Resources, which

had the fourth place well at 2,856 barrels; QEP Energy, which had the fifth, sev-

enth and eighth wells; Petro-Hunt at ninth; and Whiting at tenth. IPs for those

seven wells ranged from 1,210 to 2,856 barrels. Those wells are in the Charlson,

Grail and Clear Creek fields in McKenzie County, and in the Reunion Bay and

Sanish fields in Mountrail County.

Montana productionNot only is Continental the No. 1 producer in North Dakota but also in

Montana where the company’s daily production averaged 16,421 bpd in

November. Oasis Petroleum came in as the second largest producer in Montana in

November with 6,757 bpd, followed by Enerplus Resources, XTO Energy and

Whiting to round out the top five Montana producers.

—MIKE ELLERD

January 13, 2014From: Denbury Onshore, LLCTo: Cornerstone Natural Resources, LLC#04387 - North American Royalties 1; vertical;Madison; Northeast Foothills; 3/13/1968; 70 bbl;SWSW 6-161N-90W; Burke Co.

From: Hess CorporationTo: Enduro Operating, LLC#02998 - SWSCU 25-34; vertical; Spearfish/Charles;South Westhope; 10/6/1961; 44 bbl; SWSE 25-162N-80W; Bottineau Co

January 14, 2014From: Petro Hunt, LLCTo: White Owl Energy Services, Inc.#07701 - Carus 1-20-3D; vertical; Madison; LittleKnife; 7/3/1980; 145 bbl; SWSE 20-145N-97W; DunnCo.

From: Samson Resources CompanyTo: Hess Corporation#21304 - Stanley 28-21-156-91H; horizontal; Bakken;Ross; 5/17/2012; 398 bbl; SESW 28-156N-91W;Mountrail Co.

—Compiled by Ashley Lindly

North Dakota well operator transfers January 11–17, 2014

LEGENDDate of well operator transfer

Well(s) transferred from

Well(s) transferred to

NDIC well file number — well name — well type — geological target — field —

IP (initial production) test date — IP oil rate in barrels — location — county

Subscribe at

PETROLEUMNEWSBAKKEN.COM



Abraxas Petroleum (October 2013)Elm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 37Lane – Bakken – Richland 0Sidney – Bakken – Richland 0

Daily average: 1

Armstrong Operating (October 2013)Elm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 808

Daily average: 26

Burlington Resources Oil and Gas (ConocoPhillips) (October 2013)Elm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 38,278

Daily average: 1,235

Charger ResourcesElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 200

Daily average: 7

Continental ResourcesElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 457,255Elm Coulee, Northeast – Three Forks – Richland 440Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Richland 20,104Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Roosevelt 14,833Wildcat Richland – Bakken – Richland 0

Monthly total: 492,632Daily average: 16,421

Denbury OnshoreLookout Butte – Lodgepole – Fallon 121Lookout Butte, East, Unit – Lodgepole – Fallon 0

Daily average: 4

Earthstone EnergySpring Lake, West – Bakken – Richland 0

Enerplus Resources USACharlie Creek – Bakken – Richland 160Elm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 164,991Epworth – Bakken – Richland 145Girard – Bakken – Richland 163Mustang – Bakken – Richland 422Putnam – Bakken – Richland 0Spring lake – Bakken – Richland 276

Three Buttes – Bakken – Richland 212


EOG ResourcesElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 19,700Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Roosevelt 49,460Wildcat Richland – Bakken – Richland 0


Fidelity Exploration and Production (MDU)Elm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 2,913Elm Coulee – Three Forks – Richland 290

Monthly total: 3,203Daily average: 107

Marathon Oil (October 2013)Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Sheridan 6,540Elm Coulee, Northeast – Three Forks – Sheridan 1,695


MBI Oil and Gas (October 2013)Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Richland 770

Daily average: 25

McRae and Henry (October 2013)Outlook – Mission Canyon, Bakken – Sheridan 0Outlook – Nisku, Bakken – Sheridan 317

Daily average: 10

Mountain Pacific General (October 2013)Two Waters – Bakken – Richland 0

Newfield ProductionElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 20,912Comertown – Lodgepole – Sheridan 0

Daily average: 697

Oasis Petroleum North AmericaElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 500Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Richland 45,246Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Roosevelt 153,055Elm Coulee, Northeast – Three Forks – Roosevelt 3,899


Panther Energy Company (October 2013)Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Richland 339

Daily average: 11

Sagebrush ResourcesRedstone – Bakken – Sheridan 71

Daily average: 2

Samson Oil and Gas (October 2013)Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Roosevelt 0

Samson Resources (KKR & Co) (October 2013)Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Sheridan 1,416Elm Coulee, Northeast – Three Forks – Sheridan 779


Sinclair Oil and GasElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 1,473Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Sheridan 963


Slawson ExplorationElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 59,191Elm Coulee – Lodgepole – Richland 444Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Roosevelt 6,351


SM EnergyBrorson – Mission Canyon, Bakken – Richland 355Brorson, South – Bakken – Richland 0Brorson, South – Mission Canyon, Bakken – Richland 948Elm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 21,726Mustang – Bakken – Richland 89Putnam – Mission Canyon, Bakken – Richland 148Vaux – Mission Canyon, Bakken – Richland 468


TAQA North (October 2013)Flat Lake – Bakken – Sheridan 25,656Johnson Lake – Bakken – Sheridan 0

Daily average: 828

Whiting Oil and GasElm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 229Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Richland 104,353Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Roosevelt 2,646Elm Coulee, Northeast – Three Forks – Richland 2,061Elm Coulee, Northeast – Three Forks – Roosevelt 1,727Elm Coulee, Northeast – Three Forks – Sheridan 706


XTO Energy (ExxonMobil)Elm Coulee – Bakken – Richland 156,519Elm Coulee, Northeast – Bakken – Roosevelt 8,985



The information below is derived from State of Montana production reports and separated out by company. Note this is oilproduced by wells operated by these companies; it does not identify the percentage of Bakken petroleum system oil such asThree Forks, Bakken, Pronghorn, etc. that is actually owned by the company, so it might differ from what each companyreports. It also does not include oil production from wells operated by others, in which these companies might hold an interest,or wells currently on confidential status. The daily average was derived from dividing the total production by the number ofdays in November, excluding production from wells on confidential status and rounded to the nearest whole. Note: Abraxas,Armstrong, Burlington Resources Oil and Gas, Marathon, MBI Oil and Gas, McRae and Henry, Mountain Pacific, Panther Energy, Samson Resources, Samson Oil and Gas USA Montana, andTAQA North had not yet filed their November production information, so their October production is shown, as noted.

The operator names used in this report are as they appear in State of Montana records, even though some of the companies or their Bakken system assets might have been purchased byother companies. When that is the case, the current owner’s name is in parenthesis behind the owner of record. If any current owners are missing, please contact Ashley Lindly at [email protected].

LEGENDField – pool – county – barrels of oil per monthDaily average in barrels of oil

Montana Bakken oil production by company November 2013

Top 5 Montana Bakken oil producersNovember 2013

Continental Resources 16,421 bpdOasis Petroleum 6,757 bpdEnerplus Resources 5,546 bpdXTO Energy (ExxonMobil) 5,517 bpdWhiting Oil and Gas 3,724 bpd

Average November 2013 Bakken oil production: 44,162

Billings Co.Permits renewedPetro-HuntHagen 144-98-12C-1-1H; NENW 13-144N-98W;285’FNL and 2,235’FWL; Little Knife; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,522’ ground; 24781; 33-007-01783;1/16/2014Osadchuk 142-100-14A-15-1H; SENE 14-142N-100W; 1,550’FNL and 285’FEL; Tree Top; N/A*; on con-fidential status; 2,731’ ground; 24777; 33-007-01781;1/16/2014State 144-98-16A-21-1H; NWNE 16-144N-98W;250’FNL and 1,620’FEL; Little Knife; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,549’ ground; 24778; 33-007-01782;1/16/2014Terres 144-98-13B-24-1H; NENW 13-144N-98W;285’FNL and 2,310’FWL; Little Knife; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,524’ ground; 24782; 33-007-01784;1/16/2014

Burke Co.Permits issuedOasis PetroleumShaw 6092 11-23 2B; NWNW 23-160N-92W;1,034'FNL and 250'FWL; Cottonwood; Bakken; hori-zontal; 2,422’ ground; 27467; 33-013-01767;1/14/2014Shaw 6092 11-23 3T2; NWNW 23-160N-92W;1,067'FNL and 250'FWL; Cottonwood; Bakken; hori-zontal; 2,421’ ground; 27466; 33-013-01766;1/14/2014Shaw 6092 11-23 4T; NWNW 23-160N-92W;1,100'FNL and 250'FWL; Cottonwood; Bakken; hori-zontal; 2,421’ ground; 27465; 33-013-01765;1/14/2014Shaw 6092 11-23 6B; NWNW 23-160N-92W;1,166'FNL and 250'FWL; Cottonwood; Bakken; hori-zontal; 2,419’ ground; 27463; 33-013-01763;1/14/2014

Petro-HuntMoody 159-94-15B-22-2H; NENW 15-159N-94W;215'FNL and 1,850'FWL; North Tioga; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,310’ ground; 27471; 33-013-01770;1/15/2014Moody 159-94-15B-22-3H; NENW 15-159N-94W;215'FNL and 1,775'FWL; North Tioga; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,308’ ground; 27470; 33-013-01769;1/15/2014Moody 159-94-15B-22-4H; NENW 15-159N-94W;215'FNL and 1,700'FWL; North Tioga; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,308’ ground; 27469; 33-013-01768;1/15/2014

Divide Co.Permits issuedMurex PetroleumJoey Danyale 27-34H; NW/NE 27-161N-101W;450'FNL and 2,100'FEL; Writing Rock; Bakken; horizon-

LEGENDThe county name is on the upper line, thetype of permit issued is on the second line,and company names are next, followed byindividual wells with data in this order: wellname; location; footages; field; geologicaltarget; well bore type; elevation; NDIC filenumber; API number; date permit shows onNDIC website.

AbbreviationsFollowing are the abbreviations used in thereport and what they mean:FNL = From North Line | FEL = From East LineFSL = From South Line | FWL = From West Line

North Dakota oil permit activity January 14—20, 2014

see ND PERMIT page 11


tal; 2,193’ ground; 27491; 33-023-01157; 1/17/2014Shauna Michelle 26-35H; NENW 26-161N-102W;280'FNL and 2,200’FWL; Daneville; Bakken; horizontal;2,115’ ground; 27492; 33-023-01158; 1/17/2014

Dunn Co.Permits issuedContinental ResourcesHartman 5-28H3; NWNW 28-146N-95W; 235'FNLand 959'FWL; Chimney Butte; N/A*; on confidentialstatus; 2,310’ ground; 27453; 33-025-02436;1/14/2014Hartman 6-28H2; NWNW 28-146N-95W; 235'FNLand 1,004'FWL; Chimney Butte; N/A*; on confidentialstatus; 2,311’ ground; 27454; 33-025-02437;1/14/2014Hartman 7-28H3; NWNW 28-146N-95W; 235'FNLand 1,049'FWL; Chimney Butte; N/A*; on confidentialstatus; 2,311’ ground; 27455; 33-025-02438;1/14/2014Hartman 8-28H1; NWNW 28-146N-95W; 385'FNLand 914'FWL; Chimney Butte; N/A*; on confidentialstatus; 2,313’ ground; 27450; 33-025-02433;1/14/2014Hartman 9-28H2; NWNW 28-146N-95W; 385'FNLand 959'FWL; Chimney Butte; N/A*; on confidentialstatus; 2,311’ ground; 27451; 33-025-02434;1/14/2014Hartman 10-28H; NWNW 28-146N-95W; 385'FNLand 1,004'FWL; Chimney Butte; N/A*; on confidentialstatus; 2,309’ ground; 27452; 33-025-02435;1/14/2014

HessLK-Bice- 147-97-1201H-7; SWSW 12-147N-97W;470'FSL and 862'FWL; Big Gulch; N/A*; on confiden-tial status; 2,568’ ground; 27461; 33-025-02444;1/14/2014LK-Bice- LW- 147-97-1201H-1; SWSW 12-147N-97W; 470'FSL and 829'FWL; Big Gulch; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,566’ ground; 27462; 33-025-02445;1/14/2014

HRC Operating (Halcon Resources)Fort Berthold 148-95-26B-35-3H; NENW 26-148N-95W; 203'FNL and 2,025'FWL; Eagle Nest; Bakken;horizontal; 2,441’ ground; 27456; 33-025-02439; 1-14-2014Fort Berthold 148-95-26B-35-4H; NENW 26-148N-95W; 173'FNL and 2,077'FWL; Eagle Nest; Bakken;horizontal; 2,440’ ground; 27458; 33-025-02441; 1-14-2014Fort Berthold 148-95-26B-35-5H; NENW 26-148N-95W; 142'FNL and 2,128'FWL; Eagle Nest; Bakken;horizontal; 2,442’ ground; 27460; 33-025-02443; 1-14-2014Fort Berthold 148-95-26B-35-8TFH; NENW 26-148N-95W; 157'FNL and 2,102'FWL; Eagle Nest;Bakken; horizontal; 2,441’ ground; 27459; 33-025-02442; 1-14-2014Fort Berthold 148-95-26B-35-9TFH; NENW 26-148N-95W; 188'FNL and 2,051'FWL; Eagle Nest;Bakken; horizontal; 2,440’ ground; 27457; 33-025-02440; 1-14-2014

Permits renewedEnerplus ResourcesHidatsa Hills 26-21H; NENW 26-149N-93W; 725’FNLand 1,600’FWL; Mandaree; N/A*; on confidential sta-tus; 2,230’ ground; 20343; 33-025-01287; 1/16/2014Jupiter 148-93 19B-2H TF; LOT1 19-148N-93W;201’FNL and 901’FWL; McGregory Buttes; N/A*; onconfidential status; 2,207’ ground; 20438; 33-025-01307; 1/16/2014

Hunt OilHalliday 2-19-18H; LOT4 19-146N-92W; 500’FSL and245’FWL; Werner; Bakken; horizontal; 2,348’ ground;21607; 33-025-01488; 1/14/2014

Marathon OilFox USA 14-1H; NESW 14-147N-93W; 2,443’FSL and2,626’FWL; Moccasin Creek; N/A*; on confidential sta-tus; 2,233’ ground; 24744; 33-025-02035; 1/14/2014Fox USA 14-4TFH; NESW 14-147N-93W; 2,569’FSLand 2,544’FWL; Moccasin Creek; N/A*; on confidentialstatus; 2,230’ ground; 24745; 33-025-02036;1/14/2014

Location resurveyedHess Bakken Investments IILK-Alwin- 147-97-1324H-4; SWSW 12-147N-97W;470'FSL and 721'FWL; Little Knife; N/A*; on confiden-tial status; 2,562’ ground; 26309; 33-025-02259;1/14/2014LK-Alwin- 147-97-1324H-5; SWSW 12-147N-97W;470'FSL and 754'FWL; Little Knife; N/A*; on confiden-tial status; 2,563’ ground; 26308; 33-025-02258;1/14/2014

McKenzie Co.Permits issuedEmerald OilDudley Dawson 4-2-11H; SESW 32-149N-102W;350'FSL and 2,248'FWL; Sheep Butte; Bakken; horizon-tal; 2,400’ ground; 27486; 33-053-05617; 1/16/2014Dudley Dawson 5-2-11H; SESW 32-149N-102W;350'FSL and 2,298'FWL; Sheep Butte; Bakken; horizon-tal; 2,400’ ground; 27485; 33-053-05616; 1/16/2014Joel Goodsen 3-32-29H; SESW 32-149N-102W;350'FSL and 2,348'FWL; Moline; Bakken; horizontal;2,398’ ground; 27484; 33-053-05615; 1/16/2014Joel Goodsen 4-32-29H; SESW 32-149N-102W;350'FSL and 2,398'FWL; Moline; Bakken; horizontal;2,393’ ground; 27483; 33-053-05614; 1/16/2014

Hess Bakken Investments IIHA-Thompson- 2560-152-95-2017-1918H-1;SWSW 20-152N-95W; 628'FSL and 1,130'FWL;Hawkeye; N/A; on confidential status; 2,444’ ground;27472; 33-053-05603; 1/15/2014

Newfield ProductionGariety 150-99-36-25-4H; SWSE 36-150N-99W;325'FSL and 2,340'FEL; Siverston; N/A*; on confiden-tial status; 2,178’ ground; 27482; 33-053-05613;1/16/2014Gariety 150-99-36-25-5H; SWSE 36-150N-99W;325'FSL and 2,295'FEL; Siverston; N/A*; on confiden-tial status; 2,170’ ground; 27481; 33-053-05612;1/16/2014

Whiting Oil and GasSovig 24-22H; SESW 22-150N-100W; 230'FSL and1,322'FWL; Arnegard; Bakken; horizontal; 2,277’ground; 27476; 33-053-05607; 1/16/2014

Sovig 24-22-3H; SESW 22-150N-100W; 346'FSL and1,522'FWL; Arnegard; Bakken; horizontal; 2,278’ground; 27473; 33-053-05604; 1/16/2014Sovig 24-22-4H; SESW 22-150N-100W; 301'FSL and1,522'FWL; Arnegard; Bakken; horizontal; 2,278’ground; 27474; 33-053-05605; 1/16/2014Sovig 24-22-5H; SESW 22-150N-100W; 256'FSL and1,522'FWL; Arnegard; Bakken; horizontal; 2,277’ground; 27475; 33-053-05606; 1/16/2014

WPX EnergyKale Bad Brave 19-18HA; LOT4 19-149N-94W;343'FSL and 526'FWL; Squaw Creek; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,386’ ground; 27479; 33-053-05610;1/16/2014Kale Bad Brave 19-18HB; LOT4 19-149N-94W;383'FSL and 618'FWL; Squaw Creek; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,385’ ground; 27477; 33-053-05608;1/16/2014Kale Bad Brave 19-18HW; LOT4 19-149N-94W;363'FSL and 572'FWL; Squaw Creek; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,386’ ground; 27478; 33-053-05609;1/16/2014Kale Bad Brave 19-18HX2; LOT4 19-149N-94W;323'FSL and 480'FWL; Squaw Creek; N/A*; on confi-dential status; 2,385’ ground; 27480; 33-053-05611;1/16/2014

Permits renewedBurlington Resources Oil and Gas (ConocoPhillips)Brown 41-1TFH; NENE 1-150N-96W; 410’FNL and660’FEL; Blue Buttes; N/A*; on confidential status;2,387’ ground; 20468; 33-053-03493; 1/16/2014State Veeder 44-36TFH; SESE 36-150N-96W; 275’FSLand 785’FEL; Blue Buttes; N/A*; on confidential status;2,294’ ground; 20469; 33-053-03494; 1/16/2014

Enerplus ResourcesFool Bear 23-34H; SWSE 23-152N-94W; Antelope;N/A; on confidential status; 2,138’ ground; 20376; 33-053-03460; 1/16/2014

Location resurveyedOasis PetroleumHagen Banks 5298 #42-31 5B; SESW 31-152N-98W;230'FSL and 1,523'FWL; Banks; Bakken; horizontal;2,327’ ground; 27111; 33-053-05514; 1/14/2014Hagen Banks 5298 #42-31 6T; SESW 31-152N-98W;230'FSL and 1,490'FWL; Banks; Bakken; horizontal;2,328’ ground; 27110; 33-053-05513; 1/14/2014Hagen Banks 5298 #42-31 7T3; SESW 31-152N-98W; 230'FSL and 1,457'FWL; Banks; Bakken; horizon-tal; 2,329’ ground; 27109; 33-053-05512; 1/14/2014Hagen Banks 5298 #42-31 8B; SESW 31-152N-98W;230'FSL and 1,424'FWL; Banks; Bakken; horizontal;2,330’ ground; 27109; 33-053-05511; 1/14/2014

Whiting Oil and GasRoen 152-102-10C-3-2H; SESW 10-152N-102W;300'FSL and 1,635'FWL; Elk; N/A*; on confidential sta-tus; 2,161’ ground; 24913; 33-053-04772; 1/16/2014Roen 24-10-2H; SESW 10-152N-102W; 300'FSL and1,590'FWL; Elk; N/A*; on confidential status; 2,161’ground; 24912; 33-053-04771; 1/16/2014

Mountrail Co.Permits issuedHess Bakken Investments IIEN-L Cvancara- 155-93-2627H-2; SENE 26-155N-93W; 2,486'FNL and 300'FEL; Robinson Lake; N/A*; on

confidential status; 2,367’ ground; 27494; 33-061-02926; 1/17/2014EN-L Cvancara- 155-93-2627H-3; SENE 26-155N-93W; 2,519'FNL and 300'FEL; Robinson Lake; N/A*; onconfidential status; 2,368’ ground; 27495; 33-061-02927; 1/17/2014EN-L Cvancara- 155-93-2627H-4; SENE 26-155N-93W; 2,552'FNL and 300'FEL; Robinson Lake; N/A*; onconfidential status; 2,369’ ground; 27496; 33-061-02928; 1/17/2014EN-L Cvancara- 155-93-2627H-5; SENE 26-155N-93W; 2,585'FNL and 300'FEL; Robinson Lake; N/A*; onconfidential status; 2,369’ ground; 27497; 33-061-02929; 1/17/2014EN-L Cvancara- 155-93-2627H-6; SENE 26-155N-93W; 2,618'FNL and 300'FEL; Robinson Lake; N/A*; onconfidential status; 2,369’ ground; 27498; 33-061-02930; 1/17/2014

Slawson ExplorationAlamo 8-19-18TF2H; SWSE 19-151N-92W; 320'FSLand 1,373'FEL; Big Bend; N/A*; on confidential status;1,917’ ground; 27499; 33-061-02931; 1/17/2014Temptest 3-14H; SWSE 14-152N-92W; 330'FSL and1,900'FEL; Big Bend; N/A*; on confidential status;1,947’ ground; 27493; 33-061-02925; 1/17/2014

Permit for injectionWhiting PetroleumSirp 31-12; NWNE 12-153N-92W; 420’FNL and1,600’FEL; Sanish; Bakken; directional; 2,329’ ground;24779; 33-061-02383; 1/15/2014

Williams Co.Permits issuedCrescent Point EnergyCpeusc Matilda May 32-29-158-100; SWSE 32-158N-100W; 350'FSL and 1,425'FEL; Church; N/A*; onconfidential status; 1,958’ ground; 27468; 33-105-03387; 1/15/2014

Kodiak Oil and GasP Irgens 155-99-3-4-9-13H; LOT3 4-155N-99W;300'FNL and 1,680'FWL; Epping; Bakken; horizontal;2,127’ ground; 27490; 33-105-03391; 1/17/2014P Irgens 155-99-3-4-9-13H3; LOT3 4-155N-99W;300'FNL and 1,710'FWL; Epping; Bakken; horizontal;2,127’ ground; 27489; 33-105-03390; 1/17/2014P Irgens 155-99-3-4-9-14H; LOT3 4-155N-99W;300'FNL and 1,740'FWL; Epping; Bakken; horizontal;2,126’ ground; 27488; 33-105-03389; 1/17/2014P Irgens 155-99-3-4-9-14H3; LOT3 4-155N-99W;300'FNL and 1,770'FWL; Epping; Bakken; horizontal;2,125’ ground; 27487; 33-105-03388; 1/17/2014

Permits renewedOasis PetroleumHerb 5501 14-1B; LOT1 1-155N-101W; 350’FNL and925’FEL; Cow Creek; Bakken; horizontal; 1,983’ground; 24775; 33-105-02972; 1/16/2014Marlene 5501 14-1T; LOT1 1-155N-101W; 350’FNLand 975’FEL; Cow Creek; Bakken; horizontal; 1,980’ground; 24774; 33-105-02971; 1/16/2014

*Note - The geologic target for these wells was not listed in its wellfile because they are tight (confidential) holes, but the followingfields produce from the Bakken pool; Big Bend, Big Gulch, BlueButtes, Chimney Buttes, Church, Elk, Little Knife, Mandaree,McGregory Buttes, Moccasin Creek, North Tioga, Robinson Lake,Siverson and Tree Top.


ND PERMIT

IPs for completed North Dakota wells

Abraxas Petroleum25606; Lillibridge 20-17-5H; Pershing; SESW 20-150N-96W; 2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 20,633;11/20/2013; 1,298 bbl25607; Lillibridge 20-17-6H; Pershing; SESW 20-150N-96W; 2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 20,695;11/28/2013; 1,086 bbl25608; Lillibridge 20-17-7H; Pershing; SESW 20-150N-96W; 2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 20,810;11/29/2013; 1,048 bbl25609; Lillibridge 20-17-8H; Pershing; SESW 20-150N-96W; 2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 20,884;12/13/2013; 1,018 bbl

Burlington Resources Oil and Gas(ConocoPhillips)23208; CCU Boxcar 44-22PH; Corral Creek; SESE 22-147N-95W; U; Dunn; Bakken; vertical; N/A;10/31/2013; 240 bbl25655; Washburn43-36TFH; Charlson; NESE 36-153N-95W; 2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 20,091;12/29/2013; 2,856 bbl

Continental Resources24836; Bice Federal 4-32H1; Chimney Butte; SESW 32-146N-95W; 4SEC; Dunn; Bakken; horizontal; 21,028;12/22/2013; 413 bbl

Cornerstone Natural Resources22524; Funk 2-27-34H; Carter; NENE 27-162N-90W;2SEC; Burke; Bakken; horizontal; 17,393; 8/2/2013; 48bbl

Kodiak Oil and Gas25290; Charging Eagle 14-14-24-16H3; Twin Buttes;SESW 14-147N-92W; 2SEC; Dunn; Bakken; horizontal;19,445; 12/16/2013; 741 bbl

Mountain Divide25664;Heckman 7-6-1H; Fortuna; SWSE 7-162N-101W; 2SEC; Divide; Bakken; horizontal; 18,165;9/12/2013; 480 bbl25668; Olson 2-11S-1H; Fortuna; SESE 35-163N-101W; 2SEC; Divide; Bakken; horizontal; 18,888;10/15/2013; 456 bbl

QEP Energy25306; Paul 1-26-35BH; Grail; NENE 26-150N-95W;

This chart contains initial production rates, or IPs, for active wells that were filed as completed with the state of North Dakota from Jan. 14-20, 2014 inthe Bakken petroleum system, which includes formations such as the Bakken and Three Forks. The completed wells that did not have an available IPrate (N/A) likely haven’t been tested or were awarded confidential (tight-hole) status by the North Dakota Industrial Commission’s Department ofMinerals. This chart also contains a section with active wells that were released from confidential status during the same period, Jan. 14-20. Again,some IP rates were not available (N/A). The information was assembled by Petroleum News Bakken from NDIC daily activity reports and other sources.The name of the well operator is as it appears in state records, with the loss of an occasional Inc., LLC or Corporation because of space limitations.Some of the companies, or their Bakken petroleum system assets, have been acquired by others. In some of those cases, the current owner’s name is inparenthesis behind the owner of record, such as ExxonMobil in parenthesis behind XTO Energy. If the chart is missing current owner’s names, pleasecontact Ashley Lindly at [email protected].

LEGENDThe well operator’s name is on the upper line, followed by individual wells withdata in this order: NDIC file number; well name; field; location; spacing; county;geologic target; wellbore type; total depth; IP test date; IP oil flow rate. (IP standsfor initial production; in this chart it’s the first 24 hours of oil production.)

IPs for ND Bakken wells January 14—20, 2014

Statoil Oil and Gas24360; Knight 35-26 2H; Banks; McKenzie; 4,884bbl23860; Hovde 33-4 2H; Sandrocks; McKenzie; 3,358bbl24361; Knight 35-26 3TFH; Banks; McKenzie; 3,099bbl

Burlington Resources Oil and Gas(ConocoPhillips)25655; Washburn43-36TFH; Charlson; McKenzie;2,856 bbl

QEP Energy25306; Paul 1-26-35BH; Grail; McKenzie; 2,460 bbl

Marathon Oil25346; Abner 21-13TFH; Reunion Bay; Mountrail;2,374 bbl

QEP Energy25304; Paul 2-26-35TH; Grail; McKenzie; 2,257 bbl25305; Paul 2-26-35BH; Grail; McKenzie; 2,243 bbl

Petro-Hunt24312; Brenna 152-96-14A-23-7H; Clear Creek;McKenzie; 2,120 bbl

Whiting Oil and Gas25719; Savannah TTT 41-26H; Sanish; Mountrail;1,210 bbl

Note: This chart contains initial production rates, or IPs, from theadjacent IP chart for active wells that were filed as completedwith the state of North Dakota from Jan. 14–20, 2014 in theBakken petroleum system, as well as active wells that werereleased from tight- hole (confidential) status during the sameperiod. The well operator’s name is on the upper line, followedby individual wells; the NDIC file number; well name; field;county; IP oil flow rate in barrels of oil.

Top 10 Bakken wells by IP rate

see ND IP page 12


2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 20,750; 12/20/2013; 2,460 bbl25305; Paul 2-26-35BH; Grail; NENE 26-150N-95W; 2SEC; McKenzie;Bakken; horizontal; 20,765; 12/20/2013; 2,243 bbl

Samson Resources (KKR & Co.)25630; Bel Air 2314-2H; Ambrose; NWNW 26-163N-99W; 4SEC; Divide;Bakken; horizontal; 18,736; 1/2/2014; 194 bbl25632; Bel Air 2314-3H; Ambrose; NWNW 26-163N-99W; 4SEC; Divide;Bakken; horizontal; 18,556; 12/24/2013; 160 bbl25631; Comet 2635-2H; Ambrose; NWNW 26-163N-99W; 4SEC; Divide;Bakken; horizontal; 18,308; 12/24/2013; 128 bbl25633; Comet 2635-3H; Ambrose; NWNW 26-163N-99W; 4SEC; Divide;Bakken; horizontal; 15,901; 12/24/2013; 128 bbl

SM Energy25001; Annie 12-18H; Poe; LOT3 18-151N-99W; 2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken;horizontal; 21,426; 11/3/2013; 907 bbl

Statoil Oil and Gas23860; Hovde 33-4 2H; Sandrocks; NWNE 33-151N-100W; 2SEC;McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 21,625; 12/11/2013; 3,358 bbl24360; Knight 35-26 2H; Banks; SESE 35-153N-98W; 2SEC; McKenzie;Bakken; horizontal; 23,192; 12/12/2013; 4,884 bbl24361; Knight 35-26 3TFH; Banks; SESE 35-153N-98W; 2SEC; McKenzie;Bakken; horizontal; 22,819; 12/17/2013; 3,099 bbl

XTO Energy (ExxonMobil)25850; Wallace 21X-2E; West Capa; LOT3 2-154N-97W; 2SEC; Williams;

Bakken; horizontal; 20,010; 12/16/2013; 990 bbl

IPs for ND wells released from confidential status

Continental Resources25905; Jefferson 3-17H1; Crazy Man Creek; NWNE 17-153N-99W; N/A;Williams; Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A25906; Jefferson 4-17H; Crazy Man Creek; NWNE 17-153N-99W; N/A;Williams; Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A25904; Jefferson 5-17H; Crazy Man Creek; NWNE 17-153N-99W; N/A;Williams; Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A

Emerald Oil25231; Slugger 1-16-21H; Wildcat; NENW 16-149N-102W; N/A; McKenzie;Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A25232; Talon 1-9-4H; Charbonneau; NENW 16-149N-102W; N/A;McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A

Fidelity Exploration and Production (MDU)24564; Frederick 3-34-33H; Sanish; SENE 3-153N-92W; 4SEC; Mountrail;Bakken; horizontal; 19,427; 7/26/2013; 1,070 bbl

Hess Bakken Investments II25576; EN-Riersgard 156-93-1718H-6; Alger; NWSW 16-156N-93W; 4SEC;Mountrail; Bakken; horizontal; 12/23/2013; 447 bbl

Marathon Oil25346; Abner 21-13TFH; Reunion Bay; NWNE 13-151N-93W; 2SEC;Mountrail; Bakken; horizontal; 20,495; 11/13/2013; 2,374 bbl

Murex Petroleum25716; Marcel O Manuel 32-29H; Fortuna; SWSE 32-162N-101W; 2SEC;Divide; Bakken; horizontal; 18,485; 8/30/2013; 112 bbl

Petro-Hunt24312; Brenna 152-96-14A-23-7H; Clear Creek; SESE 11-152N-96W;2SEC; McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; 20,797; 10/28/2013; 2,120 bbl

QEP Energy25305; Paul 2-26-35BH; Grail; NENE 26-150N-95W; 2SEC; McKenzie;Bakken; horizontal; 20,765; 12/20/2013; 2,243 bbl25304; Paul 2-26-35TH; Grail; NENE 26-150N-95W; 2SEC; McKenzie;Bakken; horizontal; 21,045; 12/21/2013; 2,257 bbl

Slawson25546; Payara 3-21H; Van Hook; SWSE 21-152N-91W; SEC; Mountrail;Bakken; horizontal; 14,080; 10/8/2013; 546 bbl

SM Energy24446; Lucille 1-27H; Siverston; NENE 27-150N-98W; N/A; McKenzie;Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A25533; Tomlinson 3-2HS; Alexandria; LOT3 2-161N-100W; N/A; Divide;Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A

Whiting Oil and Gas25719; Savannah TTT 41-26H; Sanish; NENE 26-154N-92W; 2SEC;Mountrail; Bakken; horizontal; 17,223; 8/21/2013; 1,210 bbl

XTO Energy (ExxonMobil)25551; Marlene 42X-20H; Blue Buttes; SENE 20-150N-95W; N/A;McKenzie; Bakken; horizontal; N/A; N/A; N/A



ND IP

Abraxas PetroleumDemores – Bakken – Billings 372North Fork – Bakken – McKenzie 10,904Pershing – Bakken – McKenzie 66,794Roosevelt – Bakken – Billings 367


American Eagle EnergyColgan – Bakken – Divide 96,036


Armstrong OperatingPatterson Lake – Lodgepole – Stark 14,646Versippi – Lodgepole – N/A 918


Arsenal Energy USA Inc.Stanley – Bakken – Moutrail 33,688


Bakken HunterAmbrose – Bakken – Divide 1,330Bounty School – Bakken – Divide 1,181Crosby – Bakken – Divide 0Paulson – Bakken – Divide 1,395


Baytex Energy USA Ltd.Ambrose – Bakken – Divide 29,124Blooming Prairie – Bakken – Divide 21,612Bluffton – Bakken – Divide 2,342Burg – Bakken – Divide 5,072Burg – Bakken – Williams 864Frazier – Bakken – Divide 5,511Garnet – Bakken – Divide 4,644Lone Tree – Bakken – Williams 2,800Lone Tree Lake – Bakken – Williams 2,788Moraine – Bakken – Divide 936

Musta – Bakken – Divide 1,592Plumer – Bakken – Divide 3,113Skabo – Bakken – Divide 5,842Smoky Butte – Bakken – Divide 2,221West Ambrose – Bakken – Divide 9,233Whiteaker – Bakken – Divide 42,380Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 641


BTA Oil ProducersBicentennial – Bakken – Golden Valley 221Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 53Pierre Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 178

Monthly total: 452Daily average: 15

Burlington Resources Oil and Gas (ConocoPhillips)Bailey – Bakken – Dunn 9,323Banks – Bakken – McKenzie 3,259Bennett Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 1,298Blue Buttes – Bakken – McKenzie 238,833Bully – Bakken – McKenzie 3,596Cabernet – Bakken – Dunn 297Camel Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 13,012Charlson – Bakken – McKenzie 13,681Clear Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 58,742Corral Creek – Bakken – Dunn 175,624Croff – Bakken – McKenzie 25,634Crooked Creek – Bakken – Dunn 4,263Dimmick Lake – Bakken – McKenzie 3,830Elidah – Bakken – McKenzie 39,498Fayette – Bakken – Dunn 2,599Hawkeye – Bakken – McKenzie 109,801Haystack Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 78,238Jim Creek – Bakken – Dunn 3,385Johnson Corner – Bakken – McKenzie 112,040Keene – Bakken/Three Forks – McKenzie 147,639Killdeer – Bakken – Dunn 5,332Little Knife – Bakken – Dunn 32,924Lone Butte – Bakken – Dunn 3,265Mondak – Bakken – McKenzie 0Morgan Draw – Bakken – Golden Valley 783Murphy Creek – Bakken – Dunn 39,218

North Fork – Bakken – McKenzie 8,450Pershing – Bakken – McKenzie 21,266Pierre Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 519Sand Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 21,472Twin Valley – Bakken – McKenzie 3,043Union Center – Bakken – McKenzie 75,229 Westberg – Bakken – McKenzie 48,937Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 1,496Willmen – Bakken – Dunn 2,563

Monthly total: 1,309,089Daily average: 43,636

Carl H. NorstrandPierre Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 74

Daily average: 2

Charger ResourcesBuckhorn – Bakken – McKenzie 97Johnson Corner – Bakken – McKenzie 138Pierre Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 0


Chesapeake OperatingWildcat – Bakken/Three Forks – Golden Valley 0Wildcat – Bakken – Stark 0

Citation Oil and GasSadler – Bakken – Divide 142

Daily average: 5

Condor PetroleumHayland – Bakken – Divide 0Stoneview – Bakken – Divide 162

Daily average: 5

ConocoPhillips (see also Burlington Resources Oil and Gas)Dickinson – Lodgepole – N/A 4,412Duck Creek – Lodgepole – N/A 2,798West Dickinson – Lodgepole – N/A 0


Continental ResourcesAlkali Creek – Bakken – Mountrail 28,953Antelope – Sanish – McKenzie 36,261Avoca – Bakken – Williams 10,358Baker – Bakken – McKenzie 0

Derived from the preliminary November 2013 Oil & Gas Production Report published by the North Dakota Industrial Commission,Department of Minerals’ Oil and Gas Division. Note this is the oil produced by wells operated by these companies; it does not identify thepercentage of oil from the Bakken petroleum system (including Bakken, Three Forks, Pronghorn, Sanish, etc.) that is owned by each companyAND it does not include production from wells operated by others, in which these companies might hold an interest. It also does not includeBakken system oil production from wells on confidential status. Consequently, it usually differs from what each company reports for produc-tion. The daily average for the individual companies was derived from dividing the total production by the number of days in November, ver-sus the number of days wells were actually producing and rounded to the nearest whole.

The operator names used in this chart are exactly as they appear in the Oil and Gas Division records, but some of the companies and/or their Bakken assets might be owned by others. The ones we have identi-fied include Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company, LP, which is owned by ConocoPhillips; Fidelity Exploration & Production, owned by MDU; HRC Operating, owned by Halcon Resources; Mountain Divide,owned by Mountainview Energy; Oxy USA, owned by Occidental Petroleum; Samson Resources Company, owned by KKR & Co.; and XTO Energy, Inc., owned by ExxonMobil. Please let us know if you see oth-ers by emailing Ashley Lindly at [email protected].

LEGENDField – pool – county – total monthly oil production.Monthly total for all fields.Daily average for all fields.Numbers represent barrels of oil.

North Dakota Bakken oil production by company November 2013

If you add up all the oil produced by the operators of wells in North Dakota, average Bakken production in Novemberwas approximately 837,995 barrels of oil per day, which excludes wells on confidential status. These numbers compareto total North Dakota oil production of 973,045 bpd in November as released by the North Dakota IndustrialCommission, approximately 93 percent (908,384 bpd) of which came directly from the Bakken system, including wellson confidential status, with the remaining 7 percent coming from the other systems, such as the largely vertical wells inthe Tyler, Mission Canyon, Duperow and Red River plays. The State of North Dakota does not release detailed produc-tion information for wells on confidential status, so Petroleum News Bakken is unable to include that data in its month-ly company breakdown, including its Top 50 list. In October, Petroleum News Bakken reported 794,175 bpd of oil pro-duction from the Bakken.

see ND PRODUCTION page 13


Company BPD*

1 Continental Resources, Inc. 81,758

2 Whiting Oil and Gas Corporation 74,205

3 Hess Bakken Investments II, LLC 74,197

4 EOG Resources, Inc. 56,998

5 Statoil Oil & Gas LP 54,971

6 XTO Energy Inc. (ExxonMobil) 51,585

7 Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company LP 43,877*

8 Oasis Petroleum North America LLC 42,648

9 Marathon Oil Company 41,339

10 Kodiak Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. 41,201

11 QEP Energy Company 33,440

12 HRC Operating, LLC (Halcon Resources) 27,591

13 Slawson Exploration Company, Inc. 25,290

14 WPX Energy Williston, LLC 21,909

15 SM Energy Company 21,706

16 Newfield Production Company 14,913

17 Oxy USA Inc. (Occidental Petroleum) 14,876

18 Petro-Hunt, LLC 14,448

19 Enerplus Resources USA Corporation 11,493

20 Fidelity Exploration & Production Company 10,830

21 Hunt Oil Company 9,456

22 Triangle USA Petroleum Corporation 8,216

23 Murex Petroleum Corporation 7,789

24 Zavanna, LLC 7,635

25 Samson Resources Company 7,166

26 Baytex Energy USA Ltd 4,691

27 Sequel Energy, LLC 3,943

28 American Eagle Energy Corporation 3,201

29 Crescent Point Energy U.S. Corp 2,649

30 Abraxas Petroleum Corporation 2,615

31 Sinclair Oil and Gas Company 2,203

32 Emerald Oil, Inc. 1,627

33 Arsenal Energy USA Inc. 1,123

34 Denbury Onshore, LLC 1,076

35 True Oil LLC 951

36 Cornerstone Natural Resources LLC 946

37 Mountain Divide, LLC (Mountainview Energy) 894

38 Armstrong Operating, Inc. 519

39 GMX Resources Inc. 498

40 Gadeco, LLC 252

41 Windsor Energy Group, LLC 242

42 Resource Drilling, LLC 156

43 Rim Operating, Inc. 139

44 Bakken Hunter, LLC 130

45 Legacy Reserves Operating LP 114

46 Resolute Natural Resources Company, LLC 102

47 SHD Oil & Gas, LLC 77

48 North Plains Energy, LLC 65

49 Texakota, Inc. 35

50 Petro Harvester Operating Company, LLC 29

* Note: ConocoPhillips-owned Burlington production was added to ConocoPhillips’ separate production, so their total output determined theirranking.

Information derived from the preliminary November 2013 Oil & Gas Production Report published by the North Dakota IndustrialCommission, Department of Minerals’ Oil and Gas Division. This is oil produced by wells operated by these companies; it does not identifythe percentage of oil from the Bakken petroleum system (including Bakken, Three Forks, Pronghorn, Sanish, etc.) that is owned by eachcompany AND it does not include production from wells operated by others, in which these companies might hold an interest. It also doesnot include Bakken system oil production from wells on confidential status and the figures are rounded to the nearest whole.

Top 50 North Dakota Bakken oil producersNovember 2013

Baker – Bakken – Williams 0Banks – Bakken – McKenzie 144,363Barta – Bakken – Billings 6,900Battleview – Bakken – Williams 3,926Baukol Noonan – Bakken – Divide 1,524Bear Creek – Bakken – Dunn 24,373Beaver Creek – Bakken – Golden Valley 5,438Beaver Creek Bay – Bakken – Mercer 38Beaver Lodge – Bakken – Williams 18,184Bell – Bakken – Stark 1,261Bicentennial – Bakken – McKenzie 751Big Gulch – Bakken – Dunn 6,030Blacktail – Bakken – Billings 2,310Bluffton – Bakken – Divide 2,749Border – Bakken – Burke 8,015Border – Bakken – Divide 2,173Brooklyn – Bakken – Williams 143,764Bully – Bakken – McKenzie 4,072Cabernet – Bakken – Dunn 7,875Camel Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 1,289Camp – Bakken – McKenzie 90,992Catwalk – Bakken – Williams 7,083Cedar Coulee – Bakken – Dunn 29,714Charlie Bob – Bakken – McKenzie 175Charlson – Bakken – McKenzie 0Chimney Butte – Bakken – Dunn 122,847Corinth – Bakken - Williams 26,045Corral Creek – Bakken – Dunn 78,126Crazy Man Creek – Bakken – Williams 35,872Demores – Bakken – Billings 469Dimmick Lake – Bakken – McKenzie 7,632Dollar Joe – Bakken – Williams 74,998Dolphin – Bakken – Divide 25,707Dutch Henry Butte – Bakken – Stark 147East Fork – Bakken – Williams 56,239Edge – Bakken – McKenzie 816Elidah – Bakken – McKenzie 24,494Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 7,213Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 2,520Ellisville – Bakken – Williams 3,069Elm Tree – Bakken – McKenzie 120,480Epping – Bakken – Williams 17,645Fairfield – Bakken – Billings 4,611Fancy Buttes – Bakken – McKenzie 2,099Forthun – Bakken – Divide 3,358

Frazier – Bakken – Divide 8,431Glade – Bakken – Billings 232Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 3,202Hamlet – Bakken – Divide 25,221Hamlet – Bakken – Williams 98,907Hanson – Bakken – Williams 9,490Hardscrabble – Bakken – Williams 2,916Hayland – Bakken – Divide 5,322Haystack Butte – Bakken – Dunn 3,828Haystack Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 8,461Hebron – Bakken – Williams 26,106Indian Hill – Bakken – McKenzie 15,739Jim Creek – Bakken – Dunn 66,945Juno – Bakken – Divide 3,731Kimberly – Bakken – Divide 1,350Last Chance – Bakken – McKenzie 6,337Last Chance – Bakken – Williams 17,414Lindahl – Bakken – Williams 77,294Little Knife – Bakken – Dunn 15,055Lone Tree Lake – Bakken – Williams 20,919Long Creek – Bakken – Williams 23,399Mary – Bakken – McKenzie 770Mondak – Bakken – McKenzie 3,503Murphy Creek – Bakken – Dunn 47,578New Home – Bakken – Williams 7,945North Tioga – Bakken – Burke 17,968North Tioga – Bakken – Williams 42,482North Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 39,352Northwest McGregor – Bakken – Williams 12,482Oakdale – Bakken – Dunn 237,844Oliver – Bakken – Williams 55,608Patent Gate – Bakken – McKenzie 7,441Pembroke – Bakken – McKenzie 4,071Pershing – Bakken – McKenzie 10,176Pleasant Valley – Bakken – Williams 2,929Poe – Bakken – McKenzie 2,457Rainbow – Bakken – Williams 6,235Ranch Coulee – Bakken – McKenzie 2,689Ranch Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 929Rattlesnake Point – Bakken – Dunn 19,988Rosebud – Bakken – Williams 3,276Ross – Bakken – Mountrail 514Saddle Butte – Bakken 2,052Sadler – Bakken – Divide 12,060Sauk – Bakken – Divide 4,053Sauk – Bakken – Williams 22,672Siverston – Bakken – McKenzie 2,512South Boxcar – Bakken – McKenzie 281South Meadow – Bakken – Williams 434

Squires – Bakken – Williams 6,405St. Anthony – Bakken – Dunn 3,582St. Demetrius – Bakken – Billings 27,375Stoneview – Bakken – Burke 12,446Stoneview – Bakken – Divide 76,565Stoneview – Bakken – Williams 11,996Temple – Bakken – Williams 4,499Todd – Bakken – Williams 4,582Ukraina – Bakken – Billings 1,978Upland – Bakken – Divide 33,404Viking – Bakken – Burke 9,850West Capa – Bakken – Williams 1,129Westberg – Bakken – McKenzie 6,999Whitetail – Bakken – Billings 189Wildcat – Bakken – Billings 4,035Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 994Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 7,788Wildrose – Bakken – Divide 17,003Willow Creek – Bakken – Williams 3,555Winner – Bakken – Williams 4,809


Cornerstone Natural ResourcesBailey – Bakken – Dunn 3,444Carter – Bakken – Burke 4,148Clear Water – Bakken – Burke 1,146Coteau – Bakken – Burke 4,207Customs – Bakken – Burke 1,329Flaxton – Bakken – Burke 2,812Lignite – Bakken – Burke 400Lostwood – Bakken – Burke 1,967Northeast Foothills – Bakken – Burke 764Pickett – Bakken – Burke 1,354South Coteau – Bakken – Burke 4,676Woburn – Bakken – Burke 2,140


Crescent Point EnergyAlkabo – Bakken – Divide 1,157Blue Ridge – Bakken – Williams 6,297Church – Bakken – Williams 2,875Colgan – Bakken – Divide 3,910Dublin – Bakken – Williams 3,364Ellisville – Bakken – Williams 8,755


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Gooseneck – Bakken – Divide 3,900Little Muddy – Bakken – Williams 13,433New Home – Bakken – Williams 364West Ambrose – Bakken – Divide 13,783Wheelock – Bakken – Williams 748Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 4,399Wildrose – Bakken – Divide 1,380Winner – Bakken – Williams 15,107


Denbury OnshoreEland – Lodgepole – N/A 21,114Livestock – Lodgepole – N/A 0Stadium – Lodgepole – N/A 11,088Subdivision – Lodgepole – N/A 66


Eagle OperatingSpiral – Bakken – Burke 48

Daily average: 2

Earthstone EnergyFlat Top Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 185

Daily average: 6

Emerald OilBoxcar Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 11,806Charbonneau – Bakken – McKenzie 27,766Foreman Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 9,246


Encore Energy Partners OperatingIce Caves – Bakken – Billings 164North Tioga – Bakken – Burke 67Tree Top – Bakken – Billings 82


Endeavor Energy ResourcesBicentennial – Bakken – McKenzie 0

Enduro OperatingHay Draw – Bakken – McKenzie 315Stoneview – Bakken – Divide 0

Daily average: 11

Enerplus ResourcesAntelope – Sanish – McKenzie 11,736Beicegel Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 0Eagle Nest – Bakken – Dunn 8,259Eagle Nest – Bakken – McKenzie 24,536Four Bears – Bakken – McKenzie 935Heart Butte – Bakken – Dunn 31,947Mandaree – Bakken – Dunn 127,908McGregory Buttes – Bakken – Dunn 109,019Moccasin Creek – Bakken – Dunn 11,139South Fork – Bakken – Dunn 3,058Spotted Horn – Bakken – McKenzie 10,770Squaw Creek – Bakken – Dunn 4,405Wildcat – Bakken – Dunn 1,092


EOG ResourcesAlger – Bakken – Mountrail 36,191Antelope – Sanish – McKenzie 65,361Clarks Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 144,127Clear Water – Bakken – Burke 12,747Clear Water – Bakken – Mountrail 95,774Cottonwood – Bakken – Mountrail 10,174Eightmile – Bakken – Williams 1,869Ft. Buford – Bakken – Williams 4,210Hebron – Bakken – Williams 3,352Kittleson Slough – Bakken – Mountrail 46,080Lake Trenton – Bakken – Williams 650Little Butte – Bakken – Burke 629Mandaree – Bakken – Dunn 7,152Painted Woods – Bakken – Williams 37,471Parshall – Bakken – Mountrail 815,746Rosebud – Bakken – Williams 8,399Ross – Bakken – Mountrail 45,184Round Prairie – Bakken – Williams 21,751Sixmile – Bakken – Williams 6,703Spotted Horn – Bakken – McKenzie 188,974Squaw Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 19,025Squires – Bakken – Williams 2,269Stanley – Bakken – Mountrail 19,919Thompson Lake – Bakken – Burke 14,649Van Hook – Bakken – Mountrail 99,432Vanville – Bakken – Burke 774Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 1,314


Evertson OperatingRay – Bakken – Williams 260

Daily average 9

Fidelity Exploration and Production (MDU)Alger – Bakken – Mountrail 20,536Dickinson – Bakken – Stark 8,525Dutch Henry Butte – Bakken – Stark 16,588Green River – Bakken – Stark 3,595Heart River – Bakken – Stark 30,808Lehigh – Bakken – Stark 430New Hradec – Bakken – Stark 1,958Sanish – Bakken – Mountrail 126,244Stanley – Bakken – Mountrail 112,677Zenith – Bakken – Stark 3,526


Filco Inc.Charlson – Bakken – McKenzie 32Rough Rider – Bakken – McKenzie 25


GadecoEpping – Bakken – Williams 7,563

Daily average: 252

Galaxy OilHamlet – Bakken – Divide 39Sauk – Bakken – Williams 28


GMX ResourcesBeicegel Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 3,135Bennett Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 4,605Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 1,182Magpie – Bakken – Billings 1,270New Hradec – Bakken – Stark 1,855Ranch Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 2,156Tree Top – Bakken – Billings 731Whitetail – Bakken – Billings 0


Hess Bakken Investments IIAlger – Bakken – Mountrail 118,223Alkali Creek – Bakken – Mountrail 195,243Antelope – Sanish – McKenzie 67,688Antelope Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 5,428Bailey – Bakken – Dunn 285Banks – Bakken – McKenzie 6,995Baskin – Bakken – Mountrail 13,410Baukol Noonan – Bakken – Divide 382Bear Creek – Bakken – Dunn 2,302Beaver Lodge – Bakken – Williams 52,359Big Butte – Bakken – Mountrail 91,967Big Gulch – Bakken – Dunn 10,463Blue Buttes – Bakken – McKenzie 183,417Capa – Bakken – Williams 20,701Cedar Coulee – Bakken – Dunn 49,791Cherry Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 92,824Clear Water – Bakken – Mountrail 12,572Cottonwood – Bakken – Mountrail 774Crazy Man Creek – Bakken – Williams 3,181Davis Buttes – Bakken – Stark 2,559Dollar Joe – Bakken – Williams 19,886East Fork – Bakken – Williams 1,826East Tioga – Bakken – Mountrail 450Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 2,552Ellsworth – Bakken – McKenzie 29,102Elm Tree – Bakken – McKenzie 10,500Enget Lake – Bakken – Mountrail 1,212Forthun – Bakken – Burke 2,476Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 5,724Hans Creek – Bakken – Dunn 0Hawkeye – Bakken – McKenzie 149,914Hofflund – Bakken – Williams 879Jim Creek – Bakken – Dunn 2,036Juniper – Bakken – McKenzie 4,499Kittleson Slough – Bakken – Mountrail 637Lake Ilo – Bakken – Dunn 0Larson – Bakken – Burke 2,236Little Knife – Bakken – Dunn 160,673Little Knife – Bakken – McKenzie 829Lone Butte – Bakken – Dunn 3,300Lone Tree Lake – Bakken – Williams 15,727Long Creek – Bakken – Williams 3,091Manitou – Bakken – Mountrail 71,183Manning – Bakken – Dunn 2,132Marmon – Bakken – Williams 8,898Midway – Bakken – Williams 546Murphy Creek – Bakken – Dunn 39,060New Home – Bakken – Williams 1,551Oliver – Bakken – Williams 9,228Parshall – Bakken – Mountrail 2,953Pleasant Valley – Bakken – Mountrail 9,730Rainbow – Bakken – Williams 9,143Ranch Coulee – Bakken – McKenzie 0Ray – Bakken – Williams 41,070Robinson Lake – Bakken – Mountrail 313,061Ross – Bakken – Mountrail 52,942Sandrocks – Bakken – McKenzie 2,463Sather Lake – Bakken – McKenzie 8,420Saxon – Bakken – Dunn 0Short Creek – Bakken – Burke 828Siverston – Bakken – McKenzie 52,279Sorkness – Bakken – Mountrail 4,766South Meadow – Bakken – Williams 820

South Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 3,438Spencer – Bakken – Ward 1,285Stanley – Bakken – Mountrail 3,039Timber Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 12,384Tioga – Bakken – Mountrail 6,329Tioga – Bakken – Williams 4,327Truax – Bakken – Williams 164,825Westberg – Bakken – McKenzie 6,216Wheelock – Bakken – Williams 39,325White Earth – Bakken – Mountrail 2,583Wildcat – Bakken – Burke 895Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 2,077


HRC Operating (Halcon Resources)Antelope – Sanish – McKenzie 160,174Climax – Bakken – Williams 19,244Dublin – Bakken – Williams 8,045Eagle Nest – Bakken – McKenzie 213,463Ellisville – Bakken – Williams 2,900Flat Top Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 0Four Bears – Bakken – McKenzie 93,674Good Luck – Bakken – Williams 12,883Little Muddy – Bakken – Williams 8,568Lone Tree Lake – Bakken – Williams 10,661Marmon – Bakken – Williams 36,354McGregory Buttes – Bakken 147,586Otter – Bakken – Williams 25,991Pembroke – Bakken – McKenzie 2,323Spotted Horn – Bakken – McKenzie 14,500Strandahl – Bakken – Williams 44,597Tyrone – Bakken – Williams 11,914Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 14,852


Hunt OilAlexandria – Bakken – Divide 9,672Antelope Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 11,160Bailey – Bakken – Dunn 4,966Bear Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 5,434Bluffton – Bakken – Divide 6,556Buffalo Wallow – Bakken – McKenzie 1,247Bully – Bakken – McKenzie 1,169Clear Water – Bakken – Mountrail 8,167Ellsworth – Bakken – McKenzie 2,482Frazier – Bakken – Divide 20,126Lake Ilo – Bakken – Dunn 9,859Little Tank – Bakken – McKenzie 9,235Parshall – Bakken – Mountrail 76,633Ross – Bakken – Mountrail 45,808Sather Lake – Bakken – McKenzie 14,560Sioux Trail – Bakken – Divide 3,066Werner – Bakken – Dunn 17,263Wolf Bay – Bakken – Dunn 24,742Zahl – Bakken – Williams 11,545


JettisonLittle Knife – Bakken – Billings 13Stoneview – Bakken – Burke 409


Kodiak Oil and GasBanks – Bakken – McKenzie 15,186Big Stone – Bakken – Williams 3,152Bully – Bakken – McKenzie 5,472Corinth – Bakken – Williams 4,313Cow Creek – Bakken – Williams 7,640East Fork – Bakken – Williams 97,202Epping – Bakken – Williams 65,454Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 53,319Grinnell – Bakken – McKenzie 5,178Heart Butte – Bakken – Dunn 73,168Mandaree – Bakken – Dunn 25,053Moccasin Creek – Bakken – Dunn 88,399Mondak – Bakken – McKenzie 11,637Pembroke – Bakken – McKenzie 152,315Pierre Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 538Poe – Bakken – McKenzie 101,286Ranch Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 4,503Sand Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 1,587South Fork – Bakken – Dunn 44,039Springbrook – Bakken – Williams 8,516Stockyard Creek – Bakken – Williams 72,972Truax – Bakken – Williams 306,140Twin Buttes – Bakken – Dunn 58,952Tyrone – Bakken – Williams 24,482Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 4,119Wildrose – Bakken – Divide 1,393


Legacy Reserves OperatingAsh Coulee – Bakken – Billings 308Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 726Roosevelt – Bakken – Billings 1,580South Boxcar – Bakken – McKenzie 0Squaw Gap – Bakken – McKenzie 813



ND PRODUCTION



Marathon OilAntelope – Sanish – McKenzie 23,078Bailey – Bakken – Dunn 274,945Big Bend – Bakken – Mountrail 4,092Chimney Butte – Bakken – Dunn 31,522Deep Water Creek Bay – Bakken – McLean 38,029Four Bears – Bakken – McKenzie 15,183Jim Creek – Bakken – Dunn 717Killdeer – Bakken – Dunn 93,587Lake Ilo – Bakken – Dunn 17,708Lost Bridge – Bakken – Dunn 22,300McGregory Buttes – Bakken – Dunn 50,636Moccasin Creek – Bakken – Dunn 13,616Murphy Creek – Bakken – Dunn 132,907Murphy Creek – Lodgepole – Dunn 636Reunion Bay – Bakken – McKenzie 26,566Reunion Bay – Bakken – Mountrail 385,446Saxon – Bakken – Dunn 1,175Strandahl – Bakken – Williams 16,746Van Hook – Bakken – Mountrail 60,229Werner – Bakken – Dunn 5,768Wildcat – Bakken – McLean 0Wolf Bay – Bakken – Dunn 23.324Zahl – Bakken – Williams 1,866


MBI Oil and GasRough Rider – Bakken – McKenzie 41Tree Top – Bakken – Billings 0

Daily average: 1

Missouri River RoyaltyJuniper – Bakken – McKenzie 57Manitou – Bakken – Mountrail 301


Mountain Divide (Mountainview Energy)Fortuna – Bakken – Divide 23,142Wildcat – Bakken – Divide 3,692


Murex PetroleumAlexander – Bakken – McKenzie 3,919Beaver Lodge – Bakken – Williams 14,200Fortuna – Bakken – Divide 6,526Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 8,523Lonesome – Bakken – McKenzie 3,140McGregor – Bakken – Williams 17,018Midway – Bakken – Williams 14,036Rawson – Bakken – McKenzie 6,187Sandrocks – Bakken – McKenzie 8,973Sanish – Bakken – Mountrail 59,903Stanley – Bakken – Mountrail 67,498Temple – Bakken – Williams 100Tioga – Bakken – Williams 1,954West Bank – Bakken – Williams 15,214West Capa – Bakken – Williams 1,033West Tioga – Bakken – Williams 1,298Writing Rock – Bakken – Divide 4,148


Newfield ProductionBanks – Bakken – McKenzie 4,246Bear Den – Bakken – McKenzie 2,241Fertile Valley – Bakken – Divide 3,704Hanks – Bakken – Williams 2,325Haystack Butte – Bakken – Dunn 2,330Haystack Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 13,566Keene – Bakken/Three Forks – McKenzie 29,752Lost Bridge – Bakken – Dunn 5,607Pembroke – Bakken – McKenzie 2,839Sand Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 13,962Sandrocks – Bakken – McKenzie 23,225Siverston – Bakken – McKenzie 128,157South Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 67,850Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 40,167Westberg – Bakken – McKenzie 107,414


North Plains EnergySmokey Butte – Bakken – Divide 1,949

Daily average: 65

Oasis PetroleumAlger – Bakken – Mountrail 88,872Alkali Creek – Bakken – Mountrail 13,605Assiniboine – Bakken – McKenzie 8,643Baker – Bakken – McKenzie 20,545Banks – Bakken – McKenzie 32,345Black Slough – Bakken – Burke 3,693Bonetrail – Bakken – Williams 13,996Bull Butte – Bakken – Williams 52,539Camp – Bakken – McKenzie 187,652Camp – Bakken – Williams 6,987Church – Bakken – Williams 1,532Cottonwood – Bakken – Burke 50,161Cottonwood – Bakken – Mountrail 63,339

Cow Creek – Bakken – Williams 14,697Crazy Man Creek – Bakken – Williams 30,926Dore – Bakken – McKenzie 17,116Dublin – Bakken – Williams 4,289Eightmile – Bakken – McKenzie 6,162Eightmile – Bakken – Williams 2,526Elidah – Bakken – McKenzie 5,169Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 7,414Foothills – Bakken – Burke 4,955Foreman Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 22,731Ft. Buford – Bakken – Williams 6,990Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 5,794Gros Ventre – Bakken – Burke 58,625Harding – Bakken – McKenzie 4,915Hebron – Bakken – Williams 4,456Indian Hill – Bakken – McKenzie 8,696Lake Trenton – Bakken – Williams 7,654Leaf Mountain – Bakken – Burke 481Lucy – Bakken – Burke 7,223Marmon – Bakken – Williams 7,251Missouri Ridge – Bakken – Williams 12,975Mondak – Bakken – McKenzie 6,113Nohly Lake – Bakken – McKenzie 4,527North Tioga – Bakken – Burke 4,899North Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 5,149Painted Woods – Bakken – Williams 25,852Pronghorn – Bakken – McKenzie 5,282Rawson – Bakken – McKenzie 3,559Robinson Lake – Bakken – Mountrail 38,026Rosebud – Bakken – Williams 22,265Sand Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 1,311Sanish – Bakken – Mountrail 73,007Siverston – Bakken – McKenzie 17,725Sorkness – Bakken – Mountrail 9,651Squires – Bakken – Williams 47,218Strandahl – Bakken – Williams 974Todd – Bakken – Williams 11,680Trenton – Bakken – Williams 4,274Tyrone – Bakken – Williams 48,914Tyrone – Lodgepole – Williams 0Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 15,296Wildcat – Bakken – Mountrail 3,218Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 2,012Willow Creek – Bakken – Williams 143,545


Oxy USA (Occidental Petroleum)Cabernet – Bakken – Dunn 37,113Crooked Creek – Bakken – Dunn 9,953Dimond – Bakken – Burke 36,781Fayette – Bakken – Dunn 133,117Hungry Man Butte – Bakken – Billings 5,550Little Knife – Bakken – Billings 3,838Little Knife – Bakken – Dunn 3,233Manning – Bakken – Dunn 45,359Murphy Creek – Bakken – Dunn 88,113Russian Creek – Bakken – Dunn 19,026Saddle Butte – Bakken – Billings 3,632Simon Butte – Bakken – Dunn 7,909Snow – Bakken – Billings 2,488St. Anthony – Bakken – Dunn 17,435Vanville – Bakken – Burke 4,532Wildcat – Bakken – Dunn 0Willmen – Bakken – Billings 598Willmen – Bakken – Dunn 27,602


Peregrine Petroleum PartnersBuckhorn – Bakken – BillingsCovered Bridge – Bakken – McKenzie 27Flat Top Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 279


Petro Harvester OperatingLittle Butte – Bakken – Burke 335Thompson Lake – Bakken – Burke 531


Petro-HuntCharlson – Bakken – McKenzie 78,986Clear Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 172,429East Fork – Bakken – Williams 5,305East Tioga – Bakken – Burke 3,023East Tioga – Bakken – Mountrail 17,264Keene – Bakken/Three Forks – McKenzie 1,681Kittleson Slough – Bakken – Mountrail 5,366Little Knife – Bakken – Billings 2,560Little Knife – Bakken – Dunn 1,849North Tioga – Bakken – Burke 93,835Powers Lake – Bakken – Mountrail 1,190Stockyard Creek – Bakken – Williams 11,326Stoneview – Bakken – Divide 908Union Center – Bakken – McKenzie 37,730


Phillip D. ArmstrongCharlson – Bakken – McKenzie 30Elm Tree – Bakken – McKenzie 68


Pride Energy, an Oklahoma General PartnershipCartwright – Bakken – McKenzie 119

Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 160Squaw Gap – Bakken – McKenzie 0


QEP EnergyBlue Buttes – Bakken – McKenzie 28,746Croff – Bakken – McKenzie 16,226Deep Water Creek Bay – Bakken 46,409Grail – Bakken – McKenzie 512,348Heart Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 365,026Spotted Horn – Bakken – McKenzie 14,463Squires – Bakken – Williams 4,994Van Hook – Bakken – Mountrail 6,476Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 8,513


Ranch OilAntelope – Sanish – McKenzie 72Westberg – Bakken – McKenzie 11


Renegade Petroleum (North Dakota)Wildcat – Bakken – Renville 0

Resolute Natural ResourcesLone Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 2,813Ranch Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 235


Resource DrillingClear Water – Bakken – Mountrail 4,691

Daily average: 156

Rim OperatingRennie Lake – Bakken – Burke 768Clayton – Bakken – Burke 623Little Butte – Bakken – Burke 2,789


Samson Resources (KKR & Co.)Ambrose – Bakken – Divide 153,155Blooming Prairie – Bakken – Divide 19,428Candak – Bakken – Divide 2,343Ross – Bakken – Mountrail 3,6333,633West Ambrose – Bakken – Divide 36,211Wildcat – Bakken – Divide 206


Samuel Gary Jr. and AssociatesWest Tioga – Bakken – Williams 574

Daily average: 19

Sequel EnergyBull Moose – Bakken – McKenzie 8,013Cinnamon Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 1,531Cottonwood – Bakken – Burke 197Cottonwood – Bakken – Mountrail 130Flat Top Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 8,112McGregor – Bakken – Williams 47,381North Tioga – Bakken – Burke 306North Tioga – Bakken – Divide 3,736Pierre Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 8,332Stoneview – Bakken – Burke 92Stoneview – Bakken – Divide 1,786Temple – Bakken – Williams 38,671


SHD Oil and GasDeep Water Creek Bay – Bakken – McLean 2,300

Daily average: 77

Sinclair Oil and GasBully – Bakken – McKenzie 2,980Little Knife – Bakken – Dunn 12,341Lone Butte – Bakken – Dunn 7,807Mary – Bakken – Dunn 3,487Parshall – Bakken – Mountrail 3,730Robinson Lake – Bakken – Mountrail 20,202Sanish – Bakken – Mountrail 15,554


Slawson ExplorationAlger – Bakken – Mountrail 18,877Arnegard – Bakken – McKenzie 2,367Baker – Bakken – McKenzie 9,883Bicentennial – Bakken – McKenzie 0Big Bend – Bakken – Mountrail 230,332Boxcar Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 2,530Bully – Bakken – McKenzie 2,427Cabernet – Bakken – Dunn 1,917Cedar Coulee – Bakken – Dunn 45Charbonneau – Bakken – McKenzie 2,093


ND PRODUCTION



Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 2,499Ellsworth – Bakken – McKenzie 3,919Elm Tree – Bakken – McKenzie 44,214Kittleson Slough – Bakken – Mountrail 12,780Mondak – Bakken – McKenzie 3,611Murphy Creek – Bakken – Dunn 3,402North Fork – Bakken – McKenzie 27,119North Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 5,634Painted Woods – Bakken – Williams 3,166Parshall – Bakken – Mountrail 4,867Pleasant Hill – Bakken – McKenzie 2,104Ross – Bakken – Mountrail 15,339Sanish – Bakken – Mountrail 53,434Saxon – Bakken – Dunn 1,639Squaw Gap – Bakken – McKenzie 2,299Stockyard Creek – Bakken – Williams 176Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 2,327Trailside – Bakken – McKenzie 1,130Van Hook – Bakken – Mountrail 297,100Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 1,262Winter Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 325


SM EnergyAlexandria – Bakken – Divide 2,647Ambrose – Bakken – Divide 11,205Baker – Bakken – McKenzie 6,010Banks – Bakken – McKenzie 1,280Bear Den – Bakken – McKenzie 45,654Bicentennial – Bakken – Golden Valley 639Bicentennial – Bakken – McKenzie 1,940Camp – Bakken – McKenzie 8,591Cartwright – Bakken – McKenzie 2,184Charlson – Bakken – McKenzie 14,232Colgan – Bakken – Divide 88,835Croff – Bakken – McKenzie 50,586Devils Pass – Bakken – McKenzie 10Dimmick Lake – Bakken – McKenzie 2,070Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 6,418Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 243Ft. Buford – Bakken – Williams 13,313Indian Hill – Bakken – McKenzie 9,733Mondak – Bakken – McKenzie 1,176Musta – Bakken – Divide 6,723Phelps Bay – Bakken – McKenzie 773Pierre Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 310Poe – Bakken – McKenzie 119,502Rough Rider – Bakken – McKenzie 1,569Siverston – Bakken – McKenzie 162,410Sixmile – Bakken – Williams 6,858West Ambrose – Bakken – Divide 79,824Wildcat – Bakken – Divide 3,882Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 2,550Wildcat – Bakken – Stark 0


Statoil Oil and GasAlexander – Bakken – McKenzie 15,313Alger – Bakken – Mountrail 422,874Avoca – Bakken – Williams 94,550Banks – Bakken – McKenzie 275,854Briar Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 75,833Buford – Bakken – Williams 13,186Bull Butte – Bakken – Williams 18,297Camp – Bakken – McKenzie 41,973Catwalk – Bakken – Williams 6,047Cow Creek – Bakken – Williams 23,656East Fork – Bakken – Williams 54,860Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 13,481Foreman Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 2,306Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 1,931Hardscrabble – Bakken – Williams 2,419Kittleson Slough – Bakken – Mountrail 7,859Lake Trenton – Bakken – Williams 1,934Last Chance – Bakken – Williams 60,059Nameless – Bakken – McKenzie 3,787Painted Woods – Bakken – Williams 86,895Parshall – Bakken – Mountrail 375Patent Gate – Bakken – McKenzie 2,839Poe – Bakken – McKenzie 59,325Ragged Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 61,735Rosebud – Bakken – Williams 4,540Ross – Bakken – Mountrail 217Sakakawea – Bakken – McKenzie 3,454Sandrocks – Bakken – McKenzie 6,923Spring Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 39,201Squires – Bakken – Williams 24,021Stony Creek – Bakken – Williams 62,544Sugar Beet – Bakken – Williams 6,849Todd – Bakken – Williams 132,760Wildcat – Bakken – Williams 2,987Williston – Bakken – Williams 18,244


Sundance EnergySpotted Horn – Bakken – McKenzie 565

Daily average: 19

TexakotaWest Tioga – Bakken – Williams 1,061

Daily average: 35

The Triple TGlade – Bakken – Billings 0

Tracker Resources Development IIICatwalk – Bakken – Williams 258

Daily average: 9

Triangle USA PetroleumAntelope Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 33,079Buffalo Wallow – Bakken – McKenzie 13,515Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 22,521Ellsworth – Bakken – McKenzie 7,687Otter – Bakken – Williams 6,684Pronghorn – Bakken – McKenzie 33,043Ragged Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 7,663Rawson – Bakken – McKenzie 56,474Rosebud – Bakken – Williams 9,452Squires – Bakken – Williams 21Timber Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 29,422Williston – Bakken – Williams 26,927


True OilBowline – Bakken – McKenzie 3,317Buffalo Wallow – Bakken – McKenzie 607Bully – Bakken – McKenzie 11,716Red Wing Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 12,894


Wesco OperatingBicentennial – Bakken – McKenzie 0Eland – Lodgepole – N/A 0North Fork – Bakken – McKenzie 12

Daily average: 0.4

Whiting Oil and GasAlger – Bakken – Mountrail 21,818Arnegard – Bakken – McKenzie 4,505Ash Coulee – Bakken – Billings 1,264Beaver Creek – Bakken – Golden Valley 9,016Bell – Bakken – Stark 132,932Bicentennial – Bakken – Golden Valley 1,704Bicentennial – Bakken – McKenzie 1,085Big Stick – Bakken – Billings 7,577Buckhorn – Bakken – Billings 485Buckhorn – Bakken – McKenzie 467Bully – Bakken – McKenzie 12,049Cartwright – Bakken – McKenzie 4,510Chateau – Three Forks – Billings 1,398Cooks Peak – Three Forks – Golden Valley 1,798Demores – Bakken – Billings 3,704Dickinson – Bakken – Stark 17,894Dollar Joe – Bakken – Williams 13,070Dutch Henry Butte – Bakken – Stark 81,195Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 4,278Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 9,886Ellsworth – Bakken – McKenzie 5,058Estes – Bakken – McKenzie 56Foreman Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 4,628Four Eyes – Bakken – Billings 234Fryburg – Bakken – Billings 228Gaylord – Bakken – Billings 2,162Gaylord – Bakken – Stark 7,694Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 7,032Green River – Bakken – Stark 9,299Harding – Bakken – McKenzie 13Hay Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 6,526Heart River – Bakken – Stark 2,549Hiline – Lodgepole – N/A 1,690Lonesome – Bakken – McKenzie 16,162Morgan Draw – Bakken – Billings 529Morgan Draw – Bakken – Golden Valley 6,993Nameless – Bakken – McKenzie 1,446Nelson Bridge – Bakken – McKenzie 1,336New Hradec – Bakken – Stark 2,832North Creek – Bakken – Stark 7,628North Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 2,029Park – Bakken – Billings 28,355Parshall – Bakken – Mountrail 10,457Pleasant Hill – Bakken – McKenzie 41,940Poker Jim – Bakken – McKenzie 120Rawson – Bakken – McKenzie 1,147Ray – Bakken – Williams 4,718Robinson Lake – Bakken – Mountrail 5,673Roosevelt – Bakken – Billings 4,923Rough Rider – Bakken – McKenzie 48Sanish – Bakken – Mountrail 1,570,090Sioux – Bakken – McKenzie 18,943South Heart – Bakken – Stark 11,838Squaw Gap – Bakken – McKenzie 426St. Anthony – Bakken – Dunn 6,113T. R – Bakken – Billings 486Timber Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 13,987Twin Valley – Bakken – McKenzie 22,260Ukraina – Bakken – Dunn 1,445Westberg – Bakken – McKenzie 46,516Wildcat – Bakken – Billings 481Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 7,664Zenith – Bakken – Stark 11,769


Windsor Energy GroupParshall – Bakken – Mountrail 7,249

Daily average: 242

WPX Energy WillistonAntelope – Sanish – McKenzie 10,864Eagle Nest – Bakken – Dunn 3,769Eagle Nest – Bakken – McKenzie 3,793Heart Butte – Bakken – Dunn 26,881Mandaree – Bakken – McKenzie 5,216Mandaree – Bakken – Dunn 52,092McGregory Buttes – Bakken – Dunn 5,075Moccasin Creek – Bakken – Dunn 76,173Reunion Bay – Bakken – Dunn 22,862Reunion Bay – Bakken – Mountrail 13,518South Fork – Bakken – Dunn 10,937Spotted Horn – Bakken – McKenzie 33,090Squaw Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 33,684Van Hook – Bakken – Mountrail 352,988Wolf Bay – Bakken – Dunn 6,320


XTO Energy (ExxonMobil)Alkali Creek – Bakken – Mountrail 34,380Alkali Creek – Bakken – Williams 9,642Antelope – Sanish – McKenzie 1,636Arnegard – Bakken – McKenzie 20,622Ash Coulee – Bakken – Billings 26Bear Creek – Bakken – Dunn 18,018Bear Den – Bakken – McKenzie 20,605Beaver Lodge – Bakken – Williams 1,126Bicentennial – Bakken – Golden Valley 266Big Butte – Bakken – Mountrail 0Big Meadow – Bakken – Williams 956Blue Buttes – Bakken – McKenzie 8,722Border – Bakken – Burke 539Boxcar Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 99Buckhorn – Bakken – Billings 340Bullsnake – Bakken – Billings 317Camp – Bakken – McKenzie 1,334Capa – Bakken – Williams 65,463Cedar Coulee – Bakken – Dunn 0Charlson – Bakken – McKenzie 70,450Charlson – Bakken – Williams 4,937Corral Creek – Bakken – Dunn 2,546Crazy Man Creek – Bakken – Williams 2,875Devils Pass – Bakken – McKenzie 36Dollar Joe – Bakken – Williams 20,990Elidah – Bakken – McKenzie 103Elk – Bakken – McKenzie 6,161Elkhorn Ranch – Bakken – Billings 564Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 33,367Glade – Bakken – Billings 219Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 8,373Grinnell – Bakken – McKenzie 7,972Grinnell – Bakken – Williams 82,855Haystack Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 27,590Haystack Butte – Bakken – Dunn 11,914Heart Butte – Bakken – Dunn 203,639Hofflund – Bakken – Williams 24,077Indian Hill – Bakken – McKenzie 12,028Killdeer – Bakken – Dunn 23,305Lindahl – Bakken – Williams 1,400Little Knife – Bakken – Dunn 23,814Lost Bridge – Bakken – Dunn 109,586Manitou – Bakken – Mountrail 3McGregor – Bakken – Williams 2,869Midway – Bakken – Williams 27,921Mondak – Bakken – McKenzie 23,508Morgan Draw – Bakken – Billings 260Morgan Draw – Bakken – Golden Valley 522Murphy Creek – Bakken – Dunn 41,431North Fork – Bakken – McKenzie 15,993North Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 79,749Poker Jim – Bakken – McKenzie 43Rough Rider – Bakken – McKenzie 213Sand Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 12,909Sheep Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 563Siverston – Bakken – McKenzie 309,381Sorkness – Bakken – Mountrail 18,438Squaw Creek – Bakken – McKenzie 0Squaw Gap – Bakken – McKenzie 770St. Demetrius – Bakken – Billings 6,541Stoneview – Bakken – Burke 1,002Stoneview – Bakken – Divide 2,022Temple – Bakken – Williams 2,885Tioga – Bakken – Williams 3,737Tobacco Garden – Bakken – McKenzie 34,425Truax – Bakken – Williams 32,559West Bank – Bakken – Williams 1,270West Capa – Bakken – Williams 62,483Whitetail – Bakken – Billings 135Wildcat – Bakken – McKenzie 2,919


ZavannaBoxcar Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 6,053Crazy Man Creek – Bakken – Williams 6,741East Fork – Bakken – Williams 11,926Foreman Butte – Bakken – McKenzie 34,057Glass Bluff – Bakken – McKenzie 28,223Long Creek – Bakken – Williams 18,419Poe – Bakken – McKenzie 4,914Springbrook – Bakken – Williams 4,339Stockyard Creek – Bakken – Williams 51,293Stony Creek – Bakken – Williams 51,648Williston – Bakken – Williams 11,445



ND PRODUCTION


Call Edward Shelton, VPBusiness Development

[email protected]

fortisenergyservices.com

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Actively acquiring

... in McKenzie, Williams,

has found the Dakota skipper inMcHenry, McKenzie and McLean coun-ties, as well as counties farther east inNorth Dakota.

The movement of the Dakota skipperhabitat westward appears to be the resultof transferring rangeland into cultivatedacreage. This change has been creepingfarther west every year in North Dakotawith increased row crop prices and wetterweather in areas once always treated ashayland.

What it could meanIf the skipper is found to be a threat-

ened species, it will be illegal for any per-son to take the species. “Take” includesharass, harm, pursue, shoot, wound, kill,trap, capture or collect. The exemption tothe taking is if it is an incidental taking,which specially only allow mowing ofsection line right of ways and recreationaltrails, spot-spraying of herbicides for nox-ious wedding control, and haying onlyafter July 15 on lands where there isnative grass.

The impact on operators could alsoinclude the need for a survey as towhether the Dakota skipper is present atany wellsite with federal minerals on theThree Affiliated Tribes Reservation.

The short lifespan of the Dakota skip-per would make that survey only possibleduring the few weeks of its life in Juneand July.

The USFW has identified specificareas where they believe the skipper isfound as units; several of these are in oilproducing areas. The identified Unit 10for protection includes existing WPXEnergy Williston LLC and EnerplusResources USA Corp. wells in the Eagle

Nest field in northern Dunn and easternMcKenzie counties. Unit 11 containsexisting SM Energy Co., Phillip D.Armstrong and Petro-Hunt LLC wells inthe Phelps Bay, Elm Tree and Charlsonfields in northeast McKenzie County.Unit 12 is in the western portion of theCharlson field with several XTO EnergyInc. wells.

Without a recent survey of the habitatof the Dakota skipper and with proposedprotected units in McKenzie County, therules would impact areas of oil and gas

development. The rules could prohibitmowing along access roads to wellsitesand the inability to use broadband weedcontrol on roads maintained by operators.In addition, the units are both sides of theCharlson field could mean that new loca-tions are found once a recent survey isinstituted. The comment period is stillopen on these proposed regulations. l


DAKOTA SKIPPER Legal services provider files for Chapter 11On Nov. 14, 2013, Sadler Law Firm L.L.P. of Houston filed for voluntary

Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Texas Southern Bankruptcy Court. The Sadler law firmfocuses on energy law, and in particular is well known for providing oil and gas titleopinions. The bankruptcy filing indicates offices in Houston, Fort Worth andCanonsburg, Pa. They provide oil and gas services for North Dakota and Montana,in addition to other states.

Chapter 11 allows the company to continue to operate its business, with oversightby a bankruptcy trustee. The debtor can then restructure its business, including theability to reject contracts.

Court filings indicate rapid growth of the office may have impacted theirfinances. In its Emergency Motion for Authority to Pay Current Employees’Salaries, Wages, Medical Benefits, and Other Related Expenses and BenefitsArising Prior to Entry of Order for Relief, it states that hydraulic fracturing led to arapid increase in capacity to meet the needs of clients. However, the newly foundgas also caused the price of natural gas to plummet. It states “the Firm, in retrospectwas slow to recognize the severity and the length of the reduction in the client’sneeds for legal services and the Firm was contractually obligated for certain longterm expenses, such as rent, that the Firm could not quickly reduce.”

Assets and liabilities are both in the $1 million to $10 million range. Sadler isrepresented by Michael J. Durrschmidt of the Hirsch & Westheimer P.C. law firm ofHouston.

Filings state that Sadler has a general partner of Randall K. Sadler Law Firm PCand one limited partner of Randall K. Sadler. Further the firm employs five lawyers,a paralegal and office administrator in Pennsylvania; three lawyers in Fort Worth;and 26 lawyers, nine paralegals and 11 administrative personnel in Houston.

On Nov. 21, 2013, it appears that the firm intended to relinquish its lease in FortWorth with the Carnegie Building L.P. at 421West Third.

— JANNELLE STEGER COMBS

environmental regulators and finalapproval from Washington Gov. JayInslee.

However, Gregerson gave the envi-ronmentalists the right to pursue a sep-arate complaint that the port did notcomply with Washington’s Open PublicMeetings Act when it met regarding thelease.

That allows the plaintiffs to pursueadditional evidence.

Port to continue effortsPort Executive Director Todd

Coleman said in a statement that the portlooked forward to continuing its efforts“to create a prosperous Clark County in aresponsible and sustainable manner.”

He said the port would work collabo-ratively with the environmental commu-nity and other stakeholders as the Tesoro-Savage project faced further reviews.

The year-long regulatory processinvolves the creation of the largest crude-handling operation in the PacificNorthwest to provide an outlet forBakken crude delivered by rail and trans-ferred to tankers to U.S. refineries.

At its peak, the terminal is expected to

turn around four unit trains a day of 100-110 rail cars each, while creating 120full-time jobs.

Kelly Flint, senior vice president andgeneral counsel for Savage, said his com-pany does not handle the rail cars, whichare owned by the customers, includingTesoro.

But ultimately he said the railroad isresponsible for making sure the carsthey’re pulling are safe, noting there havebeen recent changes in the wake of high-profile derailments in what is a “heavilyregulated industry” and more are expect-ed.

Tesoro Vice President Mark Smithsaid all of his company’s rail cars are newmodel DOT-111s and not the pre-2011cars that have become a public concern.

He said Tesoro’s outlook is for eitherflat or decreasing demand for fossil fuels,“so we’re working on other renewableprojects to supplement” those sources.

“We want to be a provider for alltransportation fuels as those technologiesget developed,” Smith said. “We’re tryingto get ahead of that process.”

Flint suggested the U.S. and the worldwill move to alternative fuels, whichcould require a change when the 10-yearlease for the terminal expires.

—GARY PARK


TESORO TERMINALAt its peak, the terminal is

expected to turn around fourunit trains a day of 100-110rail cars each, while creating

120 full-time jobs.

The year-long regulatory processinvolves the creation of the largest

crude-handling operation in thePacific Northwest to provide an

outlet for Bakken crude deliveredby rail and transferred to tankers

to U.S. refineries.

http://www.fortisenergyservices.com


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AbrasivesAlaska TextilesAlliance PipelineAmerican Association of Railroads (AAR)Anvil CorporationArctic Catering ..........................................................4Bakken Solids Control ServicesBeaver Creek ArchaeologyBorder SteelBTL LinersCancade Company LimitedCESI ChemicalCity of Grand Forks, NDClearSpan Fabric StructuresCruz Energy Services LLC (A CIRI Co.)CST StorageDakota Landing.........................................................8DAWA Solutions GroupDeep Casing ToolsE3 Energy and Environmental ExpertsEbeltoft SicklerEngineered Fire & Safety........................................19Environ Corp.Fortis Energy Services.............................................17

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OFS Energy FundOilfield ImprovementsPacific TorquePetroleum News BakkenPierce LeasingPlainsman Mfg. Inc.Polyguard ProductsPremier Community Homes Ltd.Quality Mat................................................................7Reef Oil & GasRigid Global BuildingsRitchie Bros. AuctioneersShelterLogicSpartan EngineeringTenCateTremcar Inc. ...............................................................2Trinity Health Occupational MedicineUmiaqUNICO Inc.Unit Drilling CompanyVactor ManufacturingWanzek ConstructionWillbros

Call today to spotlight yourcompany and key

people in Oil Patch Bits!

companies and those who own the land orminerals have constitutional rights todevelop it.

“North Dakota is a state that has aninterest in protecting as much as feasibleand preserving its natural resources, andwe have an enormous abundance of thosekinds of places,” Stenehjem told the com-mission when he initially presented theproposal at a December 2013 commissionmeeting. “We have a duty to respect andprotect the environment as well as protectthe historical, archeological, wildlife,tourist and ecological heritage of NorthDakota.”

Stenehjem’s proposal states that anyapplication for a permit within theseareas, or buffer zones around them, wouldneed to explain the measures the appli-cant will take to minimize impacts duringexploration and production. In the Jan. 22meeting, Gov. Jack Dalrymple suggestedchanging “buffer” to simply a “zone ofreview.” Stenehjem agreed, adding that“buffer” actually has federal law implica-tions he wants to avoid.

Agriculture Commissioner DougGoehring was unable to attend in personas he was in Africa promoting NorthDakota agricultural products, but hejoined the meeting via speakerphone.

Policy rather than ruleStenehjem developed the proposal as

an amendment to administrative rule, butat the Jan. 22 meeting he suggested, andthe commission agreed through a unani-mous vote, to write it as policy instead.This would expedite its implementation,and Stenehjem said it would also avoid therisk of litigation if people felt their opin-ions are not given enough attention in theprocess. Dalrymple also felt administra-tive rule “could cause some legislators tothink we’ve stepped over the line.”

Stenehjem said the current policies inplace do not provide the public enoughopportunity to comment on proposeddevelopment in these areas, citing the con-cerns from an incident involving ElkhornRanch, part of the Theodore RooseveltNational Park, when a park employeenoticed an oil company had staked out adrilling pad at the gate of the site.

“One of things we’ve been missing thatled to lots of the consternation we hadwith Elkhorn Ranch, is the public general-ly does not feel they have an adequate ormeaningful opportunity to present com-ments and be heard,” Stenehjem said in themeeting.

Stenehjem’s proposal would allow pub-lic comment on these applications for 10days following posted notice on theDepartment of Mineral Resources web-site.

Agriculture Commission Doug

Goehring was initially opposed, saying theprocess is already in place and he is con-cerned about redundancy. But he agreed todraft the policy anyway.

“It’s another way to inform us, eventhough I don’t think anything’s brokennow,” Goehring said in the Jan. 22 meet-ing.

Dalrymple said he’s very proud of howconscientious the Industrial Commissionhas been to guard these places, but doesagree that there is a lack of a formalizedway to gather public input.

“I really want to make it clear that sofar, so good, and our Oil and Gas Divisionhas been very sensitive to these chal-lenges, but this is a worthwhile concept,”Dalrymple said.

The commissioners also requested ver-biage within the policy that allows hiringof a site analyst who would review thepublic comments, substantiate them, andreport back to the commission.

The executive director of the DakotaResource Council, a nonprofit, grassrootsactivist organization, credits the public forthe introduction of Stenehjem’s proposal.

“It wouldn’t have happened if peoplehadn’t voiced their unhappiness in how oilis being developed in the west,” ExecutiveDirector Don Morrison told PetroleumNews Bakken. “It shows that when peopledo speak up, that’s when things can hap-pen.”

Morrison believes the commission has“glossed over problems” in the past and is

hopeful for a more thoughtful process inthe future.

“We’re not anti-drilling, but it’s how it’sdone. We can do it right, and this is a smallstep in the right direction,” Morrison said.“Trust the public. Trust the people. Webuild a better state when you can trust thepeople.”

But there is oppositionNot everyone is pleased with the pro-

posal and royalty owners and the oil indus-try are pushing back. The Royalty Ownersand Producers Education Coalition,ROPE, a group designed to educate min-eral and royalty owners about their rights,and currently funded by six oil and gascompanies, claims that as many as 10,000proposed well sites may be off limitsunder the proposal, warning that “NorthDakota’s economic miracle is in jeopardy.”

On Jan. 21, ROPE Executive VicePresident Jerry Simmons told PetroleumNews Bakken the Industrial Commissionshould not even consider the proposal.

“The Industrial Commission currentlyhas a permitting process, and in it a mem-ber of the public can launch a protest ifthey don’t like the proposed location of awell site,” Simmons said. “So our questionis what’s wrong with what’s currently inplace?”

—MAXINE HERR


PUBLIC COMMENT

MOVING HYDROCARBONSXL southern leg begins Gulf Coast deliveries

As controversy continues to cloud the international leg of the Keystone XL pipeline(see story on page 1), TransCanada Corp. announced that as of 10:45 a.m. CentralStandard Time on Jan. 22 the company’s Gulf Coast pipeline, which was designed asthe southern leg of the Keystone XL project, began delivering crude oil from Cushing,Okla., to Gulf Coast refineries. That leg of the XL is intended to ease the glut of crudeoil that builds up at the Midcontinent hub at Cushing.

TransCanada began filling the 487-mile long, 36-inch diameter pipeline with crudeoil at Cushing on Dec. 7. TransCanada projects the pipeline will have a capacity of520,000 barrels per day during the first year of operation. The capacity will laterincrease to 700,000 bpd with a potential to increase capacity to 800,000 bpd. Thepipeline was built to a higher set of safety standards, including an increased numberof pipeline inspections.

“As we bring the Gulf Coast Project into commercial operation, and look forwardto the final review for Keystone XL, it is important to remember that we have a choiceabout where to get the oil we need to maintain our quality of life,” TransCanadaPresident and Chief Executive Officer Russ Girling said in a Jan. 22 press release.

—MIKE ELLERD

http://www.petroshaleinc.com

“So when you have a third of the surface,relatively, with very strict regulation, ithas an impact on adjoining lands as well.So I’m real nervous about what the BLMand Forest Service are doing with theirmanagement plan.”

A fear that oil and gas lands may go to the birds

In 2010, federal officials determinedthe sage grouse warranted federal protec-tion, but was precluded from being listedsimply because other species held higherpriority. After a lawsuit, a federal judgeruled that the U.S. Fish and WildlifeService, FWS, must make a decisionabout the listing by September 2015.

In response, a sage-grouse advisorycouncil appointed by Montana’s governorbegan to develop a conservation strategyto prevent the sage-grouse from beinglisted, and MPA is attempting to negotiateon the plan to avoid severe ramificationsto the oil and gas industry.

“The state’s going to put out a conser-vation plan, but the federal government ispushing back on the plan because theywant to take 97 percent of federal landsoff the table,” Galt said. “That’s a big dealin Montana. I’m real worried about access… and just the anti-development stancethat seems to be coming out of the feder-al government.”

One of the obstacles in reaching anagreement is coming to consensus on theNo Surface Occupancy buffer aroundsage grouse leks in their core areas. Theproposed plan has the buffer at one mile,which would ban all surface facilitiesincluding roads and well pads within thatone-mile area. MPA wants the distance at0.6 miles, and Galt said the federal gov-ernment is ambiguous.

“They don’t give a number,” he said,“They just say, ‘more.’”

Also in negotiation concerning sagegrouse core areas is surface disruptionpercentage. The plan as it stands now lim-its disturbance to 5 percent, but the feder-al government wants to lower it to 3 per-cent. Galt said he thinks the industrycould work with 5 percent, but not 3 per-cent.

“It’s those little stipulations that whenyou put them all together are an extreme-ly big burden on oil and gas,” he said. “Ibelieve Congress has to take a real closelook at the Endangered Species Actbecause that act does nothing but hinderdevelopment and it has for a long time,and whether it actually recovers species isa big question.”

Feds present other potential problems for the industry

The Environmental Protection Agency,EPA, also keeps the industry guessing.The agency is currently undergoing ahydraulic fracturing study to determinethe need for additional regulations.Meanwhile the BLM is considering itsown hydraulic fracturing rules.

Galt said the state is trying to fight theintroduction of more regulations, arguingthat Montana doesn’t need the federalgovernment regulating something thestate already regulates.

“Federal regulations across the countryare a big deal, but the land issue is so bigin Montana because so much is owned bythe feds,” he said.

Another possibly problematic issueoriginating on Capitol Hill is tax reform.Galt said many of the ideas he’s seencome out of the senate finance committeedon’t bode well for the oil and gas indus-try.

“They change tax policy … and in

Montana we need the ability to have thosetax policies because it helps us raise cap-ital and it helps us keep doing explorationand drilling,” he said. “Without thosepolicies, that’s a real hindrance.”

Exploring the state is limitedThe number of oil rigs in Montana

stands at approximately 10. Compare thatto its oil-rich neighbor to the east averag-ing more than 180 rigs, and it’s obviousthat Big Sky Country has limited activity.It concerns Galt that oil development iscentered on only two counties (see chart).

“If you take the extreme edge ofRoosevelt and Richland counties off thetable, we don’t have a lot going on overhere,” Galt said. “You have such a focuson one part of the state, but federal regu-lations make it harder to do exploratorywork in other parts of the state.”

Though he’d like to see more opportu-nities for exploration, Galt does cite somepromising activity in north-centralMontana near the cities of Conrad andShelby, as well as Fergus and Musselshellcounties in the central part of the state.

“We’re always interested to see how farwest into Montana that the success fromthe Williston Basin goes,” Galt said.

Enhanced oil recovery is a ‘shining star’

Carbon dioxide injections in BelleCreek field to enhance oil recovery haveshowed promise. Denbury Onshoreacquired the field four years ago with theintention of rejuvenating it by switchingfrom water injection to carbon dioxideinjection. The company expects to yieldan additional 35 million barrels of oilfrom the process.

“That’s really a shining star inMontana and I look forward to that tocontinue,” Galt said. “Maybe enhancedrecovery starts looking toward FallonCounty, too.”

Galt said Montana Tech has a researchteam currently analyzing Elm Coulee inRichland County to determine how it may

respond to carbon dioxide injection aswell.

Increasing efficiency with technologyTechnological enhancements continue

to increase the efficiency of oil develop-ment in Montana. Recycled water tech-nology is emerging, Galt said, andMontana Tech is evaluating variousopportunities in the state to develop prop-pant.

“They’re looking at places to develop

sand, to try to get it closer to home,” hesaid.

Galt believes activity in the WillistonBasin is certainly benefitting the state,providing added revenue with a slowuptick in production in its two main oilproducing counties. He expects trans-portation to grow to meet the productiondemands with projects like the KeystoneXL Pipeline and other smaller pipelines. l


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“We are all accountable to ourpublics,” he said.

Baird said “the time for a decision onKeystone is now, even if it’s not the rightone. We can’t continue in this state oflimbo.”

He again resorted to Canada’s favoredargument that XL is a “great project forthe future economic prosperity ofCanada, it’s a great project that will createa lot of jobs here in the United States; it’sa great project that will increase the ener-gy security of our closest friend and ally.”

EIS, then determinationKerry promised “our friends in Canada

that all of the appropriate effort is beingput into trying to get this done effectivelyand rapidly and my hope is that beforelong (the State Department’s finalEnvironmental Impact Statement) will beavailable. Then my work begins.”

The release of that statement starts a90-day national interest determinationbefore the ultimate verdict is turned overto President Barack Obama, who has afull range of options, including furtherdelay until after mid-term U.S. elections.

Baird, known as the pit bull of PrimeMinister Stephen Harper’s cabinet, spentJan. 22-24 meeting with White Houseofficials and key members of Congress topress for XL approval.

The rail optionAt the same time, TransCanada Chief

Executive Officer Russ Girling steppedup his threat to use rail to ship oil sandsbitumen to Gulf Coast refineries if thepipeline is rejected. Keystone XL isdesigned to carry about 730,000 barrelsper day of bitumen and 100,000 bpd ofBakken crude.

He said that although pipelines are “byfar a safer” means of shipping crude he isready to build rail terminals in Albertaand Oklahoma if that’s what his cus-tomers want, adding those discussions arealready taking place with shippers andrail companies.

In a speech to the U.S. Chamber ofCommerce, one of the business groupsstrongly backing XL, Baird underscoredthe “success of the Canada U.S. relation-ship as well as the economic relationship”set forward in the North American FreeTrade Agreement.

Baird also visited with three senators— North Dakota’s Heidi Heitkamp,Louisiana’s Mary Landrieu and Alaska’sLisa Murkowski.

“I’ll tell you the frustration that manyof us have,” Heitkamp told reporters atBaird’s news conference. “It has taken uslonger to make a decision than it took usto defeat Hitler in the Second World War.”

Landrieu said the environmentalimpact report is overdue “and the deci-sion is too,” noting that several trainderailments over the past year providefurther evidence that XL and otherpipelines are the preferred shippingoption.

“One of the reasons I support thispipeline is it minimizes the impacts oftransporting oil in a more dangerous way,by either truck or rail,” Landrieu said.

Although Baird conceded he has

received no indication of where Obama isleaning, he said the U.S. should recognizethe strategic importance of Canadiancrude.

“If the administration wishes to regu-late oil, all oil, in North America, whetherit’s produced or imported, that’s a conver-sation we’re more than willing to have,”he said. “But let’s not single our Canadianoil and treat it differently than Americanor Mexican or Venezuelan oil.”

CAPP position changesThe Canadian Association of

Petroleum Producers dropped its guardedposition on the future of oil sands devel-opment, partly in response to a crusadingconcert tour by singer-songwriter NeilYoung, who accused operators of ignoringthe rights of First Nations and again saidthe oil sands region looks worse thanHiroshima after the atomic bomb attackin the Second World War.

CAPP President Dave Collyer saidYoung was guilty of “irresponsible mis-representations,” telling reporters theindustry cares “more about whatCanadians think (of the oil sands) than

Young.”He said First Nations are part of a

“legal, consultative and constitutionalprocess” that oil sands operators must fol-low, while Young’s comments would onlyfoster conflict and division rather thanlead to long-term solutions.

CAPP reported that aboriginal compa-nies in the oil sands region earned morethan C$1.8 billion in 2012 from workunder contracts with oil sands companies,pushing the total over the past 14 years tomore than C$8 billion.

Justin Bouchard, an analyst withDesjardins Securities, said CAPP hasfinally done “something it should havedone earlier,” suggesting that by keepingquiet the industry conveys the impressionthat it accepts accusations that crude fromthe oil sands is “dirty.”

Girling said that projects such asKeystone XL are being put at risk becauseof allegations that are based on “fantasy... putting Canada at risk of getting leftbehind in a competitive global market.” l


KEYSTONE TENSIONS

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, and Mexico’s Secretary of Foreign Affairs Jose AntonioMeade at the North American Foreign Ministers Meeting in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 17.

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“The time for a decision onKeystone is now, even if it’s not theright one. We can’t continue in this

state of limbo.” —John Baird, Canadian foreign affairs minister

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l tensions boil over - petroleum news · 2 petroleum news bakken † week of january 26, 2014...

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