Statistics

For a second consecutive year, the vibrant history of North Dakota’s oil and natural gas drilling has been replicated in a large illustrated map indicating all 3,461 wells in the Bakken and Three Forks formation at the end of 2011. The map was jointly published by the North Dakota Petroleum Council (NDPC) and Energy/Environmental Research Center.

North Dakota continued on a record-setting pace for oil and natural gas production at the end of the first quarter, but state Department of Mineral Resources Director Lynn Helms also raised caution in his most recent monthly “Director’s Cut” report released Friday.

Based on the state’s latest statistics as of the end of February, North Dakota’s oil production has doubled in the past two years, and with the help of increased rail transportation it is being marketed nationwide.

Preliminary data released indicates that North Dakota oil and gas production continued to soar in January and the state now ranks third nationally in average daily oil production, surpassing California and following only Texas and Alaska. With the Bakken formation, North Dakota continues to ride the shale boom.

Calling them a model for other states, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) on Tuesday unanimously approved new rules for the disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing (fracking), including trade secret protections sought by the oil and gas industry. The Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA) said the state “now has the strongest hydraulic fracturing rule in the country,” and environmental groups praised the action.

The latest national statistics through May this year from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed the use of natural gas for power generation growing at about the same pace that coal-fired generation is declining, but the biggest movements are for hydroelectric supplies moving up sharply and nuclear-based power dropping.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is having to revise wastewater statistics after one producer misreported figures.

Domestic natural gas production in the Lower 48 states fell 0.2%, or 0.15 MMcf/d, in October, the latest month for which statistics are available, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported last Tuesday. All onshore areas of the Lower 48 experienced a drop in output, including Louisiana where production fell for the first time since December 2009.

Domestic natural gas production in the Lower 48 states fell 0.2%, or 0.15 MMcf/d, in October, the latest month for which statistics are available, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported Tuesday. All onshore areas of the Lower 48 experienced a drop in output, including Louisiana where production fell for the first time since December 2009.