Permian and Anadarko Basins are competition for capital and workforce

The North Dakota Industrial Commission’s Department of Mineral Resources has released its production report for the month of May and the NDIC reports new all-time highs.

  • Oil production: 1,244,629 barrels/day (New all-time high)
  • Gas production: 2,318,754 MCF/day (New all-time high)
  • Producing Wells: 14,755 (New all-time high)

North Dakota rig count is up four from June to today and operators are shifting from running the minimum number of rigs to incremental increases and it looks to stay this way. According to Lynn Helms of the NDIC Department of Mineral Resources WTI prices would have to drop below $45/barrel for more than 30 days for the rig count to drop, the NDIC reported.

However, WTI has remained above $55/barrel and therefore rig count continues to rise. To support this trend oil price downside risk has eased thanks to OPEC approving a plan to increase production through the second half of 2018 to offset Venezuela’s export collapse and U.S. sanctions on Iran.

The estimated number of wells waiting on completion is up 13 to 955 in part due to the competition with the Permian and Anadarko shale plays for capital and workforce.

More than 99% of drilling in North Dakota targets the Bakken and Three Forks formations.


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