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North Dakota aims to reduce natural gas flaring

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, based on North Dakota Industrial Commission About one-third of the natural gas North Dakota has produced in recent years has been flared rather than sold to customers or consumed on-site. The rapid growth in North Dakota oil production, which rose from more than 230,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) in January 2010 to more than 1,130,000 bbl/d in August 2014, has led to increased volumes of associated gas , or natural gas that comes from oil reservoirs. These increased volumes require additional infrastructure to gather, process, and transport gas volumes instead of flaring them. These additions can take time to build, and well operators are often reluctant to delay production. In an effort to reduce the amount of natural gas flared, North Dakota’s Industrial Commission (NDIC) established targets that decrease the amount of flared gas over the next several years. The first target of 26% […]

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EIA: North Dakota close to flaring goal

North Dakota on pace to meet target for capturing gas associated with state oil deposits. UPI/A.J. Sisco. WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 (UPI) — North Dakota is on pace to meet its yearly goal for curbing the amount of natural gas burned off during oil production, the U.S. Energy Department said Monday. "The first target of 26 percent flared is set for fourth quarter 2014, with continued decreases in flaring reaching 10 percent by 2020," the department’s Energy Information Administration said. North Dakota’s energy infrastructure hasn’t been able to keep pace with the rapid rise in oil production and, as a result, much of the gas associated with oil deposits is burned off, or flared. EIA said North Dakota is already within 2 percentage points of meeting its target for the fourth quarter. In September, the U.S. subsidiary of Norwegian energy company Statoil, along with a joint venture between General Electric […]

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Bakken Oil Production by County

North Dakota production by county is posted here: ND Historical Barrels of Oil Produced by County  Confidential wells are not included in that data however but that estimated data can be found here: Monthly Production Report Index  Click on the latest month. Bakken by County  This is a zero based chart and gives a better overall picture of production from each county. The charts below are not zero based but gives an amplified picture of production from each county. Production in barrels per day for each county was as follows: McKenzie      386,715  Mountrail      278,940 Dunn              185,707  Williams        149,437 Rest  of ND   131,531 McKenzie county production was up by 16,435 barrels per day. McKenzie remains the most productive county in North Dakota. Mountrail county was up by 11,077 bpd. A surprisingly good month for that county. Williams […]

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Bakken Shale Expected to Hit 1.19-Million b/d in Nov. 2014

EIA Bakken Production Data | Click to Enlarge The Bakken Shale is expected to produce 1.193-million b/d of oil in November, up 22% from the same time last year, according to the Energy Information Administration’s  (EIA) Drilling Productivity Report. October’s total production from the play is expected to be 1.164-million b/d. Despite lower crude prices, EIA data shows gains in production across all major U.S. shale fields. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), only 4% of U.S. shale production needs prices above $80 for drillers to break even. In April of 2014, consultancy Wood Mackenzie issued a report that estimated break-even costs in the Bakken based on sub-plays. Break-even rates in the Sanish basin, one of the better areas for development in the Bakken, are estimated to average $58/bbl, according to the Wood Mackenzie report. Break-even costs were higher in other areas of the play. Bakken operators continue the trend to be more efficient. […]

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Bakken, North Dakota Update, August Data

The new Bakken and North Dakota  production data is out with the August production numbers. The last data point for all charts is August 2014. Bakken Barrels Per Day Bakken oil production was up 16,864 bpd in August to  1,067,745 bpd. This is about 6,100 barrels per day less than the growth in July which was 22,965 bpd. However all North Dakota was up 17,910 bpd in August compared to 21,661 growth in July. This was a growth of 1,046 bpd for North Dakota production outside the Bakken. In July production outside the Bakken was down 1,304 bpd. Bakken Well production The big surprise this month was in wells completed and wells producing. Bakken wells producing increased by 211 and all north Dakota wells producing increased by 274. That meant wells producing outside the Bakken increased by 63. That is a real shocker since Helms says 95% of all […]

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OPEC Finding U.S. Shale Harder to Crack as Rout Deepens

OPEC is resisting pressure to cut oil production while demand slumps as it tests how low prices must go to make U.S. shale oil unprofitable. As producers become more efficient, that floor is sinking. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries boosted output by the most in 13 months in September, even as crude plunged into a bear market and demand growth weakens to a five-year low, according to the International Energy Agency . Saudi Arabia and Kuwait , the largest and third-largest members of OPEC, indicated the price slump doesn’t warrant immediate production cuts, the IEA said. While OPEC acted as a “swing producer” over the past decade, responding to surpluses by cutting output, it’s now letting oil slide to see if North American production can withstand lower prices, said Antoine Halff , head of the IEA’s oil industry and markets division. So far drillers are showing no signs […]

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Worrying for Saudi, U.S. oil output cuts could take a while

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia effectively started a global oil price war this month aimed at quickly denting U.S. oil output. Slowing a U.S. drilling boom, however, could take more than a year. Many observers expect a downward spiral of global oil prices to rapidly dampen shale oil drilling in the United States, slow production growth and help bolster prices. Small producers vulnerable to sudden price moves may have to slow spending, fast reducing the amount of oil gushing to market. But even as drillers consider cutting budgets for 2015, output may continue to grow through next year and possibly into 2016, according to experts and industry insiders. Existing wells that are drilled but not yet fracked will keep output surging for months, they said. Many drillers have long-term rig contracts and are loathe to pay costly penalties for dropping equipment they could need soon after. Most have […]

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Drilling Productivity Report

New-well production per rig by region Production by region New-well oil production per rig barrels/day New-well gas production per rig thousand cubic feet/day Region October 2014 November 2014 change October 2014 November 2014 change Bakken 530 537 7 543 551 8 Eagle Ford 532 540 8 1,407 1,423 16 Haynesville 24 24 – 5,392 5,506 114 Marcellus 31 32 1 7,907 7,946 39 Niobrara 395 403 8 1,754 1,784 30 Permian 172 176 4 329 333 4 Utica 183 190 7 3,955 4,069 114 Rig-weighted average 311 315 4 1,568 1,613 45 The Drilling Productivity Report uses recent data on the total number of drilling rigs in operation along with estimates of drilling productivity and estimated changes in production from existing oil and natural gas wells to provide estimated changes in oil and natural gas production for seven key regions. EIA’s approach does not distinguish between oil-directed rigs and […]

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Bakken Drillers Poised to Curb Exploratory Spending

Bakken shale-oil producers are under pressure from tumbling prices to scale back their 2015 drilling plans in a region that accounts for one of every eight U.S. barrels of crude. Bakken oil fell 1 percent to $79.40 a barrel today, the first time it’s dropped below $80 in 11 months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Crude prices have been declining worldwide as ample North American supplies tempered the U.S. appetite for imports and Persian Gulf producers signaled they’re prepared to keep output high to protect their market shares in Asia . Companies drilling expensive, experimental wells in frontier regions such as the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale beneath Louisiana and Mississippi will be first to feel pinched by the drop-off in prices, said Gabriele Sorbara, an analyst at Topeka Capital Markets in New York . Bakken producers will soon feel the pain as well as their returns dwindle. “There is […]

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Permian Crudes Weaken After Crude Spill Shuts Sunoco Pipeline

Crude extracted from the largest U.S. oil field weakened against the U.S. benchmark after producers lost access to Midwest markets when a 4,000-barrel spill in Louisiana forced the shutdown of a key pipeline. West Texas Intermediate in Midland, Texas, weakened by 75 cents a barrel to a discount of $7 relative to the same grade in Cushing, Oklahoma, at 11:47 a.m., according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It’s the largest discount since Oct. 1. Midland is the pricing point for the Permian Basin, which produces about 1.76 million barrels of oil a day. Sunoco Logistics Partners LP (SXL) shut a segment of its Mid-Valley Pipeline between Longview, Texas, and Mayersville, Mississippi, after it spilled as much as 4,000 barrels of crude last night, Travis Lawson, a spokesman for the Philadelphia-based company, said by phone. The Mid-Valley line delivers Permian crude from Longview to six states, including Ohio and Michigan. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple