Million Dollar Way (All Bakken All The Time)

Biomass Energy Update -- Minnesota's Perspective -- The StarTribune

2012-01-29T17:23:00.001-06:00

Minnesota has spent more than $11 million in taxpayer and utility funds to advance technologies that burn biomass for heat and electric generation or convert it to a synthetic gas. Now, it's getting difficult for the technology to compete.

"The era of low-priced natural gas has blunted opportunities for biomass and other renewables," said Doug Tiffany, an agricultural economist at the University of Minnesota.

Natural gas prices have dropped by half since their peak in 2008 as exploration using hydraulic fracturing opened new gas fields in shale formations beneath Texas, Pennsylvania and elsewhere.

What's been a bonanza for those states has been just the opposite for Chippewa Valley Ethanol in Benson, Minn., 125 miles west of the Twin Cities. The cooperative spent more than $20 million in 2008 on a system that gasifies wood chips and corncobs.

Of course this is just part of the story. Minnesota bans coal-generated electricity from North Dakota.

Fargo: Participating in the Bakken Boom -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-29T11:32:00.001-06:00

Link here to the Fargo Forum.

Nothing really new in this article, but another "feel-good" story coming out of the Bakken.

The ongoing boom in the western North Dakota Oil Patch has been a siren song for businesses here – a lucrative but not easy opportunity.

Among the many answering the call is Indigo Signworks, a Fargo-based company with locations in Bismarck and Grand Forks in North Dakota, as well as Alexandria in Minnesota.
“I can name company after company expanding out there,” said Bernie Dardis, CEO of Indigo, which last summer purchased a 110-year-old sign company in Minot, N.D., so it could better meet demand in the Oil Patch.

Area business leaders say though they aren’t sure how many yet, local companies are increasingly getting in on the oil boom action in western North Dakota.

A fair number of data points in this article including the need for surveyors, and a the "great golf course" in the Bakken.

I do find it amazing; Fargo is about as far as one can get in North Dakota from the Bakken. As "big" as this story (the Bakken) is, it's only in a few western counties in North Dakota (as well as about three counties in eastern Montana and a bit of the provinces north of the border). I still maintain that most North Dakotans do not really have any first-hand knowledge of what is going on in their state. It was notable that the surveyors mentioned in this story were from out of state, Minnesota and Michigan.

Why I Love to Blog -- Reason #532

2012-01-29T10:07:00.001-06:00

Not too long ago I asked folks to send me reports of any Bakken (Williston Basin) wells that had produced more than 40,000 bbls/month.

Today, "Old Oil" alerted me to "the original Lodgepole well" in the Dickinson vicinity.

13447, 419, ConocoPhillips, Dickinson-Lodgepole Unit 74, Dickinson, s11/92; t2/93; F; cum 2.9 million bbls 11/11;

Record months of production for this well: 06/1993 -- 53,000 bbls; 07/199 -- 51,000 bbls.

This well is still producing in excess of 4,000 bbls of oil per month.

But notice something else: no pump. Still flowing without a pump.

See other monster wells at my "Monster Wells" page.

More Global Warming -- Fairbanks Freezing -- Owls Have Had Enough -- Mary Tyler Moore

2012-01-29T08:42:00.003-06:00

Link here.

Winter continued to show her love of Interior Alaska by bestowing yet another cold snap on its beleaguered residents this weekend.

The temperature at Fairbanks International Airport hit 50 below zero Saturday morning for the first time since 2006, while a low of 57 below was reported in North Pole.

Fort Yukon and Huslia were the coldest Interior communities at 63 below zero, while two others beat their own records.

Tanana hit 61 below zero Saturday morning, breaking its previous record low of 58 below, set in 1919, and Bettles, at 60 below, broke its previous record of 56 below, which was set in 1989.

No comment.

In a related article, yesterday there was a story about mass migration of snowy owls from the Arctic. It was suggested it was due to the lemming population. I don't know about you, but when temperatures are hitting -61, it's time for the snowy owls to leave. But if you want to blame it on the lemmings, that's fine with me.

Bird enthusiasts are reporting rising numbers of snowy owls from the Arctic winging into the lower 48 states this winter in a mass southern migration that a leading owl researcher called “unbelievable.”

Thousands of the snow-white birds, which stand 2 feet tall with 5-foot wingspans, have been spotted from coast to coast, feeding in farmlands in Idaho, roosting on rooftops in Montana, gliding over golf courses in Missouri and soaring over shorelines in Massachusetts.

Holt and other owl experts say the phenomenon is likely linked to lemmings, a rodent that accounts for 90 per cent of the diet of snowy owls during breeding months that stretch from May into September. The largely nocturnal birds also prey on a host of other animals, from voles to geese.

I think these experts either need to read the weather reports or actually visit Fairbanks. Unless the lemmings are migrating en masse to Massachusetts to escape the cold. But wow, that's a long trip for lemmings.

By the way, speaking of weather, I have my older granddaughter give me a weather report every day: temperature, wind, precipitation, cloud cover, etc. It's one of our favorite 30-second activities on the way to school.

I've taught her the gradations of snow precipitation: light snowfall, heavy snowfall, snow storm, blizzard, extreme blizzard, North Dakota blizzard.

Notes to the Granddaughters

I think I mentioned some time ago that I no longer watch FOX (too much fluff, too political); ABC, NBC, and CBS (too much fluff, too political, too hypocritical) except for sports events (NASCAR and football, occasional golf, no basketball). I don't even watch the award shows any more.

In every major metro market, there seems to be at least one "retro" station on cable and that's the station I watch. The granddaughters and I now make it a habit to catch "MASH" at 7:00 p.m. every night, in between their showers. ("Lost in Space" on Saturday evening is the older one's new favorite. Who woulda thought?)

After they are in bed, then a string of Mary Tyler: Mary Tyler, Bob Newhart, Dick Van Dyke.

The reason I bring this up: today there's a long, long article on MTM in the Los Angeles Times. This is a great article; brings back lots of memories. I knew a lot about MTM but this was the biggest surprise: half of the couple who slept in separate beds in Dick Van Dyke produced "Hill Street Blues," which made news when it showed some male nudity on network prime time television. I didn't see that episode (I generally did not watch HSB but I read about that episode).

Glossed over, but mentioned, is the fact that MTM has diabetes; born in 1936, she must be about 29 years old (again). She has managed her diabetes very, very well. As a kid, I thought she was beautiful. With Dick Van Dyke, she was. In MTM, not so much. But wow, what a dancer. Of all the things MTM is famous for and all that she has done, not much seems to be said about her dancing, unless of course I've missed that, which is very possible.

No Warming In 15 Years -- NASA -- New Ice Age -- An Inconvenient Truth

2012-01-29T08:32:00.000-06:00

I do not google for these stories. They are appearing with increasing frequency. In mainstream media. An inconvenient truth for some.

Just after posting "the house of cards is falling" yesterday, lo and behold, this story pops up:

The supposed 'consensus' on man-made global warming is facing an inconvenient challenge after the release of new temperature data showing the planet has not warmed for the past 15 years.

The data was released without fanfare from the Met Office of the University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit.

The figures suggest that we could even be heading for a mini-ice age to rival the 70-year temperature drop that saw frost fairs held on the Thames River in the 17th century.

Based on readings from more than 30,000 measuring stations ... it confirms that the rising trend in world temperatures ended in 1997.

Exactly what my data showed from my home thermometer which I check every couple of months. Or years. And NASA confirms.

The linked article is one of the best I've seen, with graphs, and lithographs, and everything. You can always count on the Brits to mince no words.

Anyway, put that in your pipe and smoke it.

$700K To Improve Williston Waste Water Plant -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-29T07:56:00.000-06:00

Link here to Williston Herald.

The Williston City Commission approved a low-bid of $704,700 from Magney Construction to make "influent and transfer pumping" improvements to the city's Wastewater Treatment Facility, which has been running at capacity due to high demand and increased population.

New Man-Camp In Williston -- The Heart of the Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-29T07:53:00.000-06:00

Link here to the Williston Herald.

Open to everyone, but built primarily for its own workers.

"For us it's a key step, because as we came here over a year ago, we knew we had to solve our own problem, not add to the problem," said Kevin Burke, president and CEO of Burke Construction. "The precursor to us planting our flag in this community is this facility you're looking at."

Data points:

$105/night vs $200/night for Williston motels; drops to $90/night for stays at least 30 days
Boxed breakfast, free laundry

Yet Another Renewable/Alternate/Green Energy Company Ready To Go Under

2012-01-28T22:03:00.002-06:00

Drudge Report Says This is The Third This Week!
I've Lost Count!
Natural Gas: New Low -- $2.50!

Link to Las Vegas Sun here.

Just seven months after California-based solar power company Amonix Inc. opened its largest manufacturing plant, in North Las Vegas, the company’s contractor has laid off nearly two-thirds of its workforce.

Flextronics Industrial, the Singapore solar panel manufacturer that partnered with Amonix to staff the new $18 million, 214,000-square-foot plant, laid off about 200 of its 300-plus employees Tuesday.

Amonix’s director of manufacturing operations, Eric Culberson, said the layoffs are part of “retooling” the factory as the company prepares to roll out its next-generation product. [And that product would be?]

Lewis said employees were confused and disappointed when they heard the news and were directed by human resources to look for other local jobs in retail. [Which sounds like the company does not plan to re-hire, or bring them back.]

"With a promise to bring hundreds of clean energy jobs and boost the hard-hit North Las Vegas economy, the plant was heralded as a success earlier this month by Mayor Shari Buck in her state of the city address.

Buck said Wednesday that she was aware of the layoffs but has faith the company will bring back the jobs.

How's that hope and change working out for you? Or was that, "hope there's a change"? I forget.

Week 4: January 22, 2012 -- January 28, 2012

2012-01-28T21:34:00.001-06:00

California governor fires anti-oil bureaucrats

Food shortage in Williston

Williston #6 on Forbes' fastest-growing small town list

Results of recent January 24, 2012 lease sale: bonus of $10,000/acre

EURs too conservative

Update on the Tyler

History of horizontal drilling in the Tyler

Wildcat targeting the Tyler

The Helis Grail; a monster well

Ross Gas Plant - another CRYO natural gas processing plant

BNSF opens $30 million rail year east of Minot

Those "radioactive" bags of Chinese ceramics -- never mind

New 80-room hotel near Dickinson, ND (South Heart)

Triangle Petroleum multi-pad schematic; dedicated frack spread

Elks building: new luxury hotel?

For investors:

One Last Breath, Badluck Bandits

This Could Be the Story of the Week -- And There Have Been Some Incredible Stories This Week -- Sort Of Related To the Bakken

2012-01-28T20:25:00.000-06:00

Governor Moonbean Fires Anti-Oil Bureaucrats!

Governor Brown, California: drill, drill, drill.

Hell must be freezing over.

Link here to Los Angeles Times.

Late last year, Gov. Jerry Brown pushed for a top state regulator to ease key requirements for companies seeking to tap California's oil. The official balked.

Relaxing rules on underground injection, a risky method of oil extraction common in the state, would violate environmental laws, wrote Derek Chernow, then head of the Department of Conservation, in a memo obtained by The Times.

The process, in which a rush of steam, water and chemicals flushes oil from old wells, had been linked to spills, eruptions and a Kern County worker's death. The federal government had asked the state to tighten its regulations, but the oil industry complained that the stringent rules were killing jobs.

A week after Chernow wrote his memo, Brown had him fired, along with a deputy, Elena Miller. The governor appointed replacements who agreed to stop subjecting every injection project to a top-to-bottom review before issuing a permit.

Brown's decision to side with energy interests over his regulators reflects the economic and political pressures on the governor during his return engagement in Sacramento. The economy is still sluggish in the wake of a deep recession, and unemployment remains high.

Although Brown has fought offshore drilling and sued oil companies throughout his career, making him a favorite of environmentalists, he now talks of tossing cumbersome regulations to revive the economy. The oil industry, in particular, employs tens of thousands of Californians, many of them in Kern County, where the jobless rate is 14.5%.

It is generally thought that Governor Brown is in the twilight of his political career. It's nice to think that he may be actually feeling the pain of the unemployed, and no longer worried about re-election, is doing whatever is necessary to help some dads get back to work.

This is an incredible story. I know the realists and the cynics will say this is just political posturing -- although I can't figure out what that posturing would be -- I like to think that the governor truly feels the pain of the unemployed.

Some "Feel Good" Stories -- Much Needed -- And Appreciated -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-28T18:33:00.000-06:00

Link here to Dickinson 7.

The link will be broken sooner or later ... but that's okay ... it's a great story ....

Oil-field work can be dirty work. The oil, grease, and dirt can coat the skin, cover your clothes, and really mess up other clothing in your washing machine.

But one Williston family saw this as an opportunity, and because of it they more than doubled the size of their business.

Now Village Laundry employs 25 workers, and its owners say it’s one of the few shops like it of its kind. They have a special boiler, as well as agitators and soaps to get the oil out.

They also have laundry machines that can hold up to 160 lbs of dirty clothes. They say as the business continues to grow, the plan is to add even more.

Did He Really Say This? -- Absolutely Nothing To With The Bakken

2012-01-28T14:52:00.001-06:00

Link here.

Did he really say this?

The General Motors Co. Chevrolet Volt, the first mass-market electric vehicle sold by a U.S. automaker, has become a “political punching bag,” GM Chief Executive Officer Dan Akerson said.

Akerson, testifying before a U.S. House panel today, said the Volt, which the company is fixing after fires following crash tests, is engineered for safety.

“Unfortunately, there is one thing we did not engineer,” Akerson told a House subcommittee led by Representative Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican. “Although we loaded the Volt with state-of-the-art safety features, we did not engineer the Volt to be a political punching bag. And that, sadly, is what the Volt has become.”

Did he?

************

The GM CEO is still a salesman.

When Apple was struggling years ago and when Dell was saying that Apple should simple liquidate and close shop, Steve Jobs kept pressing on. One needs to keep selling the product no matter what. One does not say his/her product has become the laughing stock of the industry.

This would be the same as if I walked into a Chevy dealer to look at the Volt, and to be told by the salesman, "Yes, it's a beautiful car isn't it? Unfortunately it's become the laughing stock of the automobile industry." That would certainly turn me off.

I didn't pay much attention to the rest of the article but it certainly makes me think the CEO used this as a trial balloon to prepare the public / the government for the news that GM will throw in the towel with regard to the Volt.

GM can't afford to keep losing money on the Volt. Dealers don't want it (earlier story). People are no longer coming into showrooms to see it. And the bean counters in the back rooms of GM headquarters are showing the front office how much they are losing with the Volt program. It can't go on much longer.

The Volt was simply an experiment that failed. Badly.

Those "Radioactive" Bags of Chinese Ceramics -- Never Mind

2012-01-28T10:07:00.001-06:00

Link here to the Minot Press.

Bags of hydraulic fracturing sand stored at a Minot site do not pose a health risk. That was the determination of the North Dakota Department of Health following the completion of testing at and near the location Thursday.

The department was testing for radioactive material.

According to Dan Harman, Department of Health program manager for radioactive materials, the level of radioactivity in the area of the bags was far less than what is encountered by most people on a daily basis. Part of the concern, said Harman, was that the term "hot" is often used in reference to hydraulic fracturing sand.

"Relative to what?" said Harman. "That's a perception. From what we've seen so far they don't pose a health risk. Just being alive in nature the average John Q. Citizen is exposed to about 620 millirads of radiation per year. The readings we got in Minot were 1,000 times smaller than a millirad."

Radioactive readings were so low that they could not be measured by standard Geiger counters.

Alternative equipment was used so that micro readings could be recorded.

The Dickinson Press has not yet picked up this story. But the press does have the headline story that mobile home residents have been evicted so that a parking lot can be put in its place.

Dickinson State University Alumni and Foundation members, along with other investors are attaching student housing to the Oasis Hotel and need space for tenants to park.

Hmmm. Interesting. Another eviction story. This time not due to the oil companies but by the university.

Where's The Value? $42,000 and Top Speed: 65 MPH -- And That's The Problem (Along With Exploding Batteries)

2012-01-28T09:54:00.001-06:00

Headline story in today's Los Angeles Times: another big bet in "EV" goes bust.

For politicians betting on electric vehicles to drive job growth, the view from inside Think City's plant here is their worst nightmare: 100 unfinished vehicles lined up with no word on whether they will be completed.

Only two years ago, the tiny Think cars (two can fit in a regular parking space) were expected to bring more than 400 jobs to this ailing city and a lifeline to suppliers who once made parts for gas-guzzling recreational vehicles.

"We've said we're out to make Indiana the electric vehicle state. It's beginning to look like the state capital will be Elkhart County," Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels said in January 2010 in announcing government incentives used to attract Think to his state.

Instead, the Hoosier State's big bet has been a bust. The plant is devoid of activity; there are just two employees. A Russian investor who recently purchased Think's bankrupt parent in Norway has been silent about its future. A government-backed Indianapolis battery maker that was to supply Think wrote off a $73-million investment in the car company and Thursday declared bankruptcy. Two unrelated electric truck makers Indiana planned to nurture have yet to get off the ground. [The government-backed battery maker was another one of Obama's initiatives. Another Solyndra.]

Indiana's foray into electric vehicles is a cautionary tale for states in hot pursuit of high-tech manufacturing jobs. Think's story illustrates how politicians so badly wanted to stimulate job growth that they showered the automaker and the battery supplier with tax benefits and incentives while at the same time failing to determine whether there was a market for the car: a plastic two-seater with a top speed of about 65 mph and a price tag approaching $42,000.

"Where's the value?" Gregg Fore, an Elkhart recreational vehicle industry executive, said of Think. "I could buy a golf cart for five grand if that's what I wanted to drive."

Fore says the federal and state governments as well as Elkhart subsidized the Think project apparently believing those tax benefits would drive down the vehicle's price and make the cars more attractive. "By giving money to the battery company and electric car company, they are saying, 'We want you to buy their products even though we know you don't want them.'"

No comment, the story speaks for itself. Except to say this was a headline story in the LA Times, not a trivial or conservative newspaper.

Where's the value? Where's the beef?

Here We Go: 80-Room Hotel Near Dickinson -- South Heart -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-28T09:25:00.000-06:00

Link here.

South Heart may soon be home to an 80-room hotel and other developments.

Centerra Development Co., Colorado-based, intends to open an office in Dickinson and develop commercial properties including a hotel, restaurant and apartment complex, said Tom Davidson, president of the company.

The hotel will have at least 80 rooms and will be constructed in north South Heart in the spring, 2012.

And then this,

The property, south of Highway 10, was a good place to begin in North Dakota, Tsiaperas said.

“It’s just kind of amazing the growth that’s going on up there,” said Kim Bradley, program manager. “It’s a huge black gold rush that’s going on right in your town and we’re all very excited.”

South Heart Mayor Floyd Hurt feels the city of about 310 people will welcome the development.

Any strategic planning, or just more of the same?

My Love For Evermore, The Hillbilly Moon Explosion

Mike Filloon: EURs Are Too Conservative

2012-01-28T09:15:00.001-06:00

Link here.

I've been saying that for two years -- EURs are way too conservative. Remember EURs of 409,000? I haven't read Mike's complete article, but I will in a moment. Will he be brave enough to predict EURs of one million bbls -- Oasis says 900,000, or was it KOG that said it will have EURs of 900,000 in its core Bakken. I forget.

But that's not the big story. EURs are for a single well.

"They" are going to put in upwards of ten wells in 1280-acre spacing units.

Remember, this is not an investment site. For an investor like Mike Filloon, EURs are very important. For me, what I find more interesting, and the basis for this blog, is the incredible production potential of the entire Bakken. Individual wells hold little interest for me except as data points to support my thesis: the Bakken is bigger than we are being told. (When I say "the Bakken" in this context, I am referring to all formations in the Williston Basin.)

Okay, back to Mike's article. What does he say about EURs?

Hmmm, unless I missed it, after the opening paragraph, he didn't mention EURs again. It was all about IPs. Hmmm.

Global Warming -- The Tip of the Spear

2012-01-28T08:59:00.006-06:00

Updates

January 29, 2012: Anchorage on track to set record --

Meteorologists agree: January is on track to be one of the most frigid months on record in Alaska history, according to the National Weather Service.

The average temperature in Anchorage for January so far is 2.7 degrees.

That's chillier even than the legendary winter of 1989, when the Daily News reported a freeze so deep that the Anchorage Police Department couldn't start 21 of their patrol cars one January morning.

Read more here: http://www.adn.com/2012/01/27/2287406/anchorage-on-track-to-set-record.html#storylink=cpy

Same day, minutes later: Global warming hits Fairbanks. January may not set a record, but January may be one of the coldest on record for Fairbanks, Alaska; it appears Fairbanks did not get the memo about global warming.

The temperature in Fairbanks has not reached 50 below zero but this month may be one of the coldest Januaries in community history.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports the average temperature through Wednesday was 24.6 below.
That's the coldest since 1971, when the January averaged minus 31.7. The coldest average on record was 1906 — a chilly 36.4 below zero.

National Weather Service meteorologist Scott Berg describes the cold this year as "persistent," with temperatures about 15 degrees below normal for much of the month.

This would be a great story for the Dickinson Press to report.

Same day, minutes later: the continental United States, especially the northern tier, has largely escaped winter this year. And that's the problem with global warming science: where do you place the thermometers and how do you "weight" them for relevancy? If you place all your thermometers in Fairbanks, one would get a different picture that if you place all your thermometers in Boston.

Original Post

The house of cards is about to fall.

Before mainstream media prints a "big story," that story has been kicked around in the back rooms for awhile, as the pros and cons of the story are discussed. When one sees something in print in mainstream media, it is often a reflection of what the "big boys" are talking about in the back rooms. By the time it hits the front pages of the mainstream media, it's pretty much old news to the movers and shakers.

Look at three headlines in the past six months.

Canada withdraws from the Kyoto Protocol (top energy story of the year, by the way)
Alternative energy companies promoted by this administration are declaring bankruptcy**
The president endorses natural gas -- "a 100-year supply in the US" in the state of the union address

I think Canada's withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol was the tipping point.

Canada has long been at the tip of the spear; the US has been the shaft, to continue the analogy:

1960s: took in US anti-war / draft dodgers*
1990's: led the environmental charge; one of the first to sign the protocol
2010's: develops the oil sands, promotes Keystone XL, withdraws form the Kyoto Protol

The thing that strikes me most about the global warming story is that it is no longer in the scientific arena.

The second thing that strikes me most about the global warming story is that the west feels China does not have to play by the same rules, the country with the most coal plants and building them at the rate of one per week, is it? I forget ... but you get the point....and the story that China is using clean coal technology ... give me a break.

Farther down the list of interesting things. No one has ever told me what the Earth's thermostat should be set at, and Who (yes, the capital "w") set the thermostat. No one has been able to provide data that the 0.6 degree rise in temperature over the next century is either reproducible or statistically significant. And the Warm Age of the Vikings is still very perplexing and unexplained (unless their Viking ships were coal-powered, as has been suggested).

It appears there are at least sixteen scientists who now agree.

“The lack of warming for more than a decade—indeed, the smaller-than-predicted warming over the 22 years since the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) began issuing projections—suggests that computer models have greatly exaggerated how much warming additional CO2 can cause,” they wrote. “Faced with this embarrassment, those promoting alarm have shifted their drumbeat from warming to weather extremes, to enable anything unusual that happens in our chaotic climate to be ascribed to CO2.”

In these scientists’ opinion, carbon dioxide is not a pollutant, but rather a key necessity for life — spurring the growth of plant life.

The group further condemned the climate of fear that has acted to trample dissenting view points that to no ape the “global warming is a crisis” message.

So, the three barbs at the tip of the spear:

Canada withdraws from the Kyoto Protocol
Alternative energy companies increasingly declaring bankruptcy; those that survive, only with government grants, subsidies, and mandates
The president embraces natural gas, a 100-year US supply, in the biggest speech of the year -- the State of the Union Address

It doesn't take a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing.

By the way, if you get a chance today, build a house of cards -- take a 52-card deck of playing cards, and build a structure as high as you can. Then let it fall. Record the noise it makes and post it on YouTube.

*********

*Draft Dodgers: Tim O'Brien's books on the VietnamWar and his coming of age books should be read by all of us who grew up in the 1960's or were affected by the Vietnam War in some respect; I think it was The Things They Carried that allowed me to reflect on that period in a more meaningful, and adult way.

**Headline story in today's Los Angeles Times: another big bet in "EV" goes bust.

For politicians betting on electric vehicles to drive job growth, the view from inside Think City's plant here is their worst nightmare: 100 unfinished vehicles lined up with no word on whether they will be completed.

Only two years ago, the tiny Think cars (two can fit in a regular parking space) were expected to bring more than 400 jobs to this ailing city and a lifeline to suppliers who once made parts for gas-guzzling recreational vehicles.

"We've said we're out to make Indiana the electric vehicle state. It's beginning to look like the state capital will be Elkhart County," Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels said in January 2010 in announcing government incentives used to attract Think to his state.

Instead, the Hoosier State's big bet has been a bust. The plant is devoid of activity; there are just two employees. A Russian investor who recently purchased Think's bankrupt parent in Norway has been silent about its future. A government-backed Indianapolis battery maker that was to supply Think wrote off a $73-million investment in the car company and Thursday declared bankruptcy. Two unrelated electric truck makers Indiana planned to nurture have yet to get off the ground.

Indiana's foray into electric vehicles is a cautionary tale for states in hot pursuit of high-tech manufacturing jobs. Think's story illustrates how politicians so badly wanted to stimulate job growth that they showered the automaker and the battery supplier with tax benefits and incentives while at the same time failing to determine whether there was a market for the car: a plastic two-seater with a top speed of about 65 mph and a price tag approaching $42,000.

For Investors Only: Marathon OIl Increases Dividend

2012-01-27T23:00:00.001-06:00

Link here.

Marathon Oil Corporation ... has approved a 13 percent increase in the quarterly dividend ... resulting in a new quarterly dividend rate of 17 cents per share.

Legislative Presentations -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-27T22:55:00.002-06:00

Anonymous sent me this link to legislative presentations. Enjoy.

http://northdakota.areavoices.com/2012/01/27/read-oil-patch-testimony-to-legislators/

Eight (8) New Permits -- Wildcat Targeting the Tyler -- Southwest North Dakota -- 35 Miles Southwest of Dickinson

2012-01-27T19:07:00.001-06:00

In today's daily activity report:

18216, DRL, Williston Exploration, Vanvig 1, Wildcat, Tyler, Billings County; Williston Exploration, LLC,'s first well; 28-138-102; 35 miles southwest of Dickinson, right where you would expect a wildcat Tyler to be drilled.

Here are the permits:

Operators: CLR (2), BEXP, Crescent Point Energy, Oasis, XTO, Whiting, and Denbury

Fields: Banks, Cottonwood, Capa, Bell, St Demetrius, Poe, Oliver

Crescent Point Energy has another wildcat in Williams; Crescent had a couple other wildcats in Williams County yesterday.

Four wells came off the confidential list and only one was completed/fracked and it was not particularly noteworthy.

However, another twelve (12) wells were said to be plugged or producing.

Eight (8) wells on DRL status reported an IP, including:

19422, 1,536, OXY USA< Beatrice Kubischta 1-15-22H-143-96, Dunn County
20051, 1,169, MRO, Red Feather USA 21-17H, Mountrail County

Whiting canceled a permit:

20309: Mikes Creek Federal 12-28TFH, Billings County

Another CRYO Natural Gas Processing Plant -- Follows On The Heels of the e ONEOK Plants -- Plains All American Ross Gas Plant -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-27T16:39:00.002-06:00

Ross Gas Plant to be built by Plains All American Pipeline data points

a cryogenic gas processing plant
"deep cut ethane plus recoveries and specification product fractionation"
purity ethane, specification propane, butane plus raw-make NGL stream
50 - 75 million cfd (compare to 100 million cfd at each of three ONEOK plants)
to be on-line by 2Q13
will deliver pipeline quality residue gas into Williston Basin Interstate Pipeline Company's transmission system
the facility will include rail-loaindg and storage facilities
first phase: capacity to trans-load 8,500 bbls/day of NGLs and 20,000 bbls/day crude oil
second phase: 4Q12; unit train loading of up to 65,000 bbls/day, to be served by a new 16-mile, 10" crude oil pipeline from PAA's Robinson Lake pipeline near Stanley, ND

The press release did not state a dollar amount for the project.

A big thank you to MD for sending me this link.

Triangle Petroleum Schematic for Multi-Pad Drilling in the Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-27T16:22:00.000-06:00

Two 1280-acre units side-by-side
One 4-well pad in each 1280-acre unit
Four long laterals running north from each pad (a total of 8 long laterals)
Alternating "middle Bakken" with "Three Forks" long lateral
Terminal separation: 1,230 feet between laterals in same formation
Source: Triangle Petroleum, corporate presentation, January, 2012

Corresponds with what others are doing

Confirms that fracking is effective about 500 feet radially; 1,000 feet diameter

Triangle states: it has a lack of near-term lease expirations

Zipper frac

Multi-pad drilling: saves about $25,000/rig move (~ $225,000/8 wells)

Random Comment Regarding Fracking Spreads in the Bakken -- Backlog Continues To Worsen -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-27T16:03:00.001-06:00

According to Triangle Petroleum, corporate presentation, January, 2012

Operators with 4 rigs or less make up approximately 40% of the market and are grossly underserved by incumbent services companies struggling to maintain pace with demand from larger customers
Current idle well inventory waiting on fracturing services is estimated at +400 wells with an estimated market of +$4 billion and growing
Estimated backlog of 350-400 wells Waiting on Completion (WOC)

This blog noted some time ago that smaller operators were last in the queue to get fracking scheduled; this seems to confirm that observation

The industry said in 2Q11 that it would catch up with fracking by 3Q/4Q11. In fact, the backlog appears to be worsening.

I am aware that Oasis, Triangle, and Chesapeake have their own fracking spreads; in addition, some operators have contracted out to dedicated fracking spreads if they don't have wholly-owned subsidiaries.

GeoResources -- One of the Stronger Shale Oil Companies -- Seeking Alpha

2012-01-27T10:21:00.001-06:00

Link here.

One of the top takeover candidates in North American shale plays is GeoResources, which boasts leaseholds in the Bakken Shale and the Eagle Ford, has a market capitalization of only $760 million. The company owns 46,000 net acres in the Bakken, of which it operates 33,200 acres. GeoResources has drilled and completed eight wells in a 25,000-acre block near the border between North Dakota and Montana. In 2012 the firm plans to drill between 23 and 26 gross wells in which it will have a 25 to 30 percent working interest.

Personal note: it's been my observation that GEOI is getting more active in the Bakken through its wholly-owned subsidiary, G3 Operating.

Warren To Ship Western Coal to West Coast --> China

2012-01-27T10:17:00.002-06:00

Warms the cockles of my heart. I have been following this story for some time.

All I can think of is all those dads and moms who will finally find work.

Work defines folks. Period. Dot. I can't think of many things more sad (sadder?) than folks who desperately want to work and can't find jobs. Somehow "occupiers" living off the largesse of their families or trust funds in the urban cities on the East Coast with the intent of denying others work is the height of hypocrisy. Carrying the banner of "environmentalism" doesn't do it for me.

The Spanish conquistadors, in their quest for gold, were preceded by priests carrying the banner of Catholicism. Not much as changed. Just the word on the banner.

In case the link is broken, this is what the story is all about:

Despite opposition from environmentalists and downtown Rainier, Wash., business owners, port commissioners Wednesday approved lease options for two coal terminals that would ship Powder River Basin coal from Wyoming and Montana mines to customers in Asia.

The five-member Port of St. Helens commission unanimously approved a lease option from Pacific Transloading LLC, a subsidiary of Australian coal company Ambre Energy, to operate a barge unloading dock at Port Westward, north of town.

Commissioners also voted 4-1 to approve a lease option from Houston-based energy giant Kinder Morgan to build potentially the largest coal terminal on the U.S. West Coast.

The Sky Is Falling! The Sky Is Falling! CVX Posts Its Largest Earnings Decline in Two Years

2012-01-27T09:46:00.003-06:00

.... from $2.64/share to $2.58/share.

Never mind.

I've told this story many, many times. I bought my first position in Texaco -- before it was CVX -- when it declared bankruptcy. And have never looked back.

It pays 3% and has a p/e of 7.7.

I remember when I first started investing thirty years ago: I was told to look for $6 stocks paying 6 percent with a p/e of 6. No joke. I guess that's why I missed AAPL when it was selling for $20, had no p/e, and was paying no dividend.

Everything's relative.

CVX paying 3 percent. What's your favorite money market account paying?

Be advised of disclaimer at the sidebar on the right. This is not an investment site. This is a friendly discussion among friends.

By the way, the state's Legacy Fund -- oil money -- will not be invested in the stock market, and will earn less than one percent.

BNSF Opens Rail Yard East of Minot -- First New Facility in BNSF System In Quite Some Time -- $30 Million -- Bakken Impact

2012-01-27T09:26:00.002-06:00

Link here.

Data points:

Gavin Yard, east of Minot
in Minot, not Williston
first new BNSF facility in quite some time
$30 million project
has now opened
new car shop and two (2) 9,200-foot inspection tracks

And,

"This is the first new facility we've built on our entire system in a long time. It just goes to show how much activity and how much potential there is in this part of the world," said Roger Nober, BNSF executive vice president from Fort Worth, Texas, where BNSF has its headquarters.

Nober said BNSF expects activity in this area will ramp up even more than it is now.

Another indication that the Bakken boom is having effect/impact outside of Williston.

Food Shortage in Williston - County Commissioner -- The Heart of the Bakken

2012-01-27T09:22:00.008-06:00

Update

January 29, 2012: the mayor sees things quite a bit differently -- "a growing Williston will be a better Williston."Great op-ed article. Good for him. And the editor of the Williston Herald supports him. Good for both of them.

Same day, later: I've seen this story before; it appears it is a "cut and paste" job from the Dickinson Press and picked up by Bloomberg. Back in 2008/2009 I received a comment from "anonymous" that predicted all of this. I did not post that comment, not wanting to be inflammatory, and wanting to give the state leaders and county commissioners the benefit of the doubt. If armchair amateurs could see it coming why couldn't others closer to the action see it coming? There was no strategic vision, no planning, and this is where it has gotten us. As noted below, for every story of whining I see, I would like to see five stories in which there is some strategic planning going on.

Same day, later: I'm sure if there was a food shortage in Williston, the Dickinson Press would have reported it.

Same day, later: this is a current ad from Economart; prices are better than what I am paying here in Boston. I see there is plenty of fruit and vegetables: avocados, grapes, apples. Thank you to a reader for sending me the link (and, no, it was not from an employee of Economart, although that would have been refreshing).

Original Post

I was in the Bakken most of August, all of September, October, and November, departing on December 1, 2011, so I don't know how things have changed between then and now, in less than two months.

I do not recall any problem with a grocery shortage in Williston. The Economart was well stocked; Wal-Mart was well stocked. I did not visit the huge Albertson's store. But I don't know. Maybe Williston is short of groceries now as the county commissioners say:

Williams County Commissioner Dan Kalil received applause from the audience after his testimony about the toll the boom has taken on Williston. The area is short on patience, jail space, groceries and fuel; and long on sewage, garbage, anger and frustration, he said.

I do know that there is a problem with diesel fuel on a daily basis, but there should be a diesel refinery up and running in the heart of the Bakken in a short time if folks work together to expedite the process. The diesel refinery would have been up and running by now had there not been the usual bureaucratic delays. Thank goodness, we don't have the Minnesota bureaucracy where it takes five years for a permit vs one year here in North Dakota.

But as far as gasoline for automobiles, again, I did not see any shortage back in September, October, and November. In WWII, "they" laid a fuel pipeline from England to Germany as the war effort moved east; that was across a channel during the biggest war in recorded history. The late Virgil Syverson, a tank driver for General Patton and long-term Williston resident, could have probably told us about that.

[The pipeline: PLUTO -- pipeline under the ocean -- from England to France to Germany.]

There's a refinery in Bismarck; if folks were serious about solutions, they should be able to find them. We can't put in a diesel pipeline from that refinery to the Bakken? Greed? Lack of strategic vision? Faux-environmentalists? The boom started back in 2007; this is 2012. The impact was being talked about back in 2008. They can't lay a diesel pipeline from Bismark to Williston in five years?

From what I see, it's two things: a) bureaucratic delays; b) lack of strategic vision; and, c) greed. Okay, three things.

The greed prevents a lot from getting done.

I do agree with this:

“This level of activity has only led to unwarranted greed and unbelievable pressure on everyone,” he said.

The oil companies tried to get the lowest lease rates possible, but local folks held for as much as they could get [and it's getting worse]. Well, duh. I suppose some would call that greed.

My first question: do the county commissioners have any oil income? My hunch is that the folks who have their wells, say "slow down." The folks who don't have their oil wells yet, say "hurry up." (By the way, wells that used to be named with names of folks and families we used to know -- not happening so much any more. Folks are asking their family names not be tied to the wells. No comment.)

It was not the outsiders that raised the rates on rooms at motels and hotels. Local folks did that. It was not the outsiders that raised the rent; that was the local folks. It was not outsiders that (in)famously evicted seniors from their long-term residences to increase the rent in Williston; that was the local owner. It was not outsiders that evicted a dance studio operator; that was the daughter/son of a long-term Williston resident, if I remember correctly. It is not the outsiders that have raised prices; outsiders are doing what they can to keep prices down. It's the local folks that have raised prices.

Not enough money coming back to the community to deal with roads, buildings, etc? That's a local problem, as in "local" at the state level, Bismarck. The outsiders don't vote; they don't control where the tax dollars go.

Lack of affordable housing? It was not the outsiders that banned man-camps.

But as I've always said, now we know how the native Americans felt when the white man invaded, bringing with them unwarranted greed and unbelievable pressure on everyone -- forcing the native Americans to reservations on some of the worse land in the state.

I'm not saying there aren't problems, huge problems. But I have great faith in what men and women can do. Certainly our grandparents, and now, in some cases, our great-grandparents suffered much greater challenges -- Giants of the Earth comes to mind.

For every Dickinson Press story I see about how tough things are, I would like to see five stories of state and federal government "fast-tracking" applications for infrastructure projects. Is WAWS on track, or is it mired in court? Why is there such a problem with getting new roads in; maintaining current roads? "They" fast-tracked the highway widening project between Williston and Watford City; I think that was done in six months, from announcement to completion. Construction crews from outside the area came in and did a bang-up job.

The Keystone XL project was killed, by faux-environmentalists; that pipeline would have taken thousands of trucks off the road on a daily basis, and maybe even less railroad terminals needed.

Anyway, I'm rambling. I know for some the Bakken boom is not fun; it is highly challenging for all. But maybe I'm seeing it from the eyes of the soldiers who took on a mission in Iraq and got it done. By the way, the Williston Herald reported fewer traffic accidents in December, 2011. Things can't be all bad.

And by the way, if groceries are in short supply in Williston, we need to ask the new Bakken millionaires to start ordering their steak, potatoes, desserts, and side dishes from Omaha Steak, to take the pressure off the local grocery stores, for the rest of the poor folks. My daughter sends me a gift pack every Christmas; it lasts for weeks. Those, whose wells have not yet come in, can order their groceries from Amazon.com. The post office, as we all know, desperately needs the business. [Although the Williston post office does not.]

It appears the one thing the Bakken is not short on is alcohol. At least that wasn't mentioned in the article above. It's funny how some things always seem to get "there." Years ago, I was deployed to a Muslim country; we were told we could not bring alcohol into the country, and that it was against the law to sell or buy alcohol there. I was naive; I believed the senior leaders. I was one of the later ones to arrive. When I arrived, I learned that the NCOs had found the discotheques and bars in the nearby city within 24 hours of their earlier arrival. I, too, enjoyed the night life.

Oh, one last story. We were in that foreign Muslim country for a full month. We were operating out of a bare-base operation, training their fighter pilots. We had an outstanding mess facility -- I do believe it was an Air Force operation, but it was so good, it makes me think it was Army-run, but I could be wrong. Be that as it may. We had great meals throughout the mission. But just standard meat and potato fare.

In these bare-base missions, it takes several days to fly every one out when being re-deployed. The fighters go first; and then there is a hierarchy of who goes next. The security forces (to protect assets) go last, and the medics, of which I was one, go second to last (to be there to aid the security forces to the end). The mess hall folks go near the end, also, until there are so few, that the last can do with meals-ready-to-eat (MRE's), the modern answer to C-rations.

The commander and the pilots were the first to leave. As soon as the fighter jets were past the halfway point between the bare base where we were and the home base to which they were returning, the dining hall chef announced over the PA system that dinner that night would be steak and lobster. I kid you not. We were in Africa. There is no lobster in Africa. But as soon as the commander and his pilots were too far to turn back, the chief cook cracked open the really good stuff.

Well, this turned into a rambling note that went nowhere.

Good luck to all.

And again, please, will all you Bakken millionaires start ordering your groceries on-line so that the food shortage in Williston can be ameliorated.

Update on Williston Story About Luxury Suites -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-27T07:15:00.000-06:00

Link here back to one of my original posts on this story.

Anonymous sent me an update from the Williston Herald, but since some folks may not read comments, here is what was sent to me:

Hmmm...maybe this Winterton Suites is the Elks bldg after all. This was in today's paper, and I am copying and pasting from the article.

Approved: a "Renaissance Zone" application from Williston Building, LLC, to make a $500,000 improvement to the Elks Building in downtown Williston. The building, which is no longer owned by the Elks, will become a a "boutique" hotel with restaurant and bar.

I'm not sure $500,000 would be enough to renovate the bldg into 25 luxury suites, but maybe this is just the amount they are asking for in relation for the Renaissance zone part of the deal?

The Elks' building is pretty huge and cool. I can see it a quaint luxury hotel.

For newbies, the Elks building isn't exactly downtown -- it is, but it's not on main street -- it's a block or two east of Main Street in a very nice residential area. Yes it would be an interesting building for luxury suites.

For Investors Only: CVX to Announce Before Market Open

2012-01-27T07:01:00.004-06:00

At least I think so.

For Investors Only: Seven (7) Stocks Cheering the Keystone Pipeline's Demise -- The Street

2012-01-27T06:17:00.000-06:00

Link here.

The seven: CLR, Whiting, Berkshire Hathaway, El Paso Pipelines, TC Pipelines, Enbridge Energy Management, XOM, Heckmann.

This is a very long article, eight pages, so it's a nice place to spend your time if you run out of things to read.

But that's not the reason I linked this article. The reason I linked this article was the headline: Demise of the Keystone Pipeline.

I remember some time ago I was taken to task for saying the Keystone was "dead." I was one of the first to say that anywhere. Well, it looks like "mainstream media" is finally using the adjective to describe the keystone XL.

Keystone XL 1.0 was taken off the table by TransCanada after folks in Nebraska suggested it be stopper.

Keystone XL 2.0 was recently rejected by the president.

TransCanada is working on Keystone XL 2.1 and 3.0.

For Investors Only: WLL, HES to Benefit From Killing of Keystone -- Seeking Alpha -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-27T05:19:00.001-06:00

Link here.

Bloomberg: Does It Ever Quit -- Yet Another Obama Energy Company Files For Bankruptcy -- Volt Battery Supplier

2012-01-26T20:20:00.000-06:00

This is getting to be a joke.

Ener1 Inc., the owner of a company that received a $118 million U.S. Energy Department grant to make electric-car batteries, filed for bankruptcy protection after defaulting on bond debt amid heavy competition from Asia.

Ener1, based in New York, makes lithium-ion batteries for plug-in electric cars, which were scrutinized by federal auto- safety officials after a General Motors Co. Chevrolet Volt caught fire, people familiar with the probe said in November. A two-month federal safety investigation cleared the Volt of danger, and GM is beginning a marketing effort to tout the car as safe and innovative.

Under President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus package, the Energy Department awarded grants in an attempt to create a U.S. electric-car industry. Ener1’s EnerDel unit, based in Indianapolis, was the grant recipient and has received about $55 million of its grant so far.

All I can say is this: truly incredible.

Actually, I can say one more thing: Solyndra.

Results of BLM Lease Sales -- January 24, 2012 -- Some Parcels for $9,700/Acre

2012-01-26T20:15:00.002-06:00

The map.

The results.

Eye-popping, selected:

Parcel #5: 80 acres; $8,300/acre; total -- $660,000. ----Sierra Resources
Parcel #15: 39 acres; $3,300/acre; total -- $128,700. -- Davis Exploration
Parcel #16: 40 acres; $9,700/acre; total -- $388,000. -- Marshall & Winston
Parcel #17: 160 acres; $4,700/acre; total --$752,000. -- KOG
Parcel #18: 480 acres; $3,500/acre; total -- $1.12 million. --- Davis Exploration
Parcel #19: 40 acres; $6,800/acre; total -- $272,000. --- Davis Exploration
Parcel #20: 40 acres; $8,100/acre; total -- $324,000. --- TDB Resources
Parcel #21: 160 acres: $2,200/acre; total -- $352,000. - SM Energy
Parcel #22: 18 acres; $2,800/acre; total -- $50,400. ---- CLR
Parcel #26: 2 acres; $4,900/acre; total ---- $9,800. ------- Nova NRG
Parcel #30: 643 acres; $3,100/acre; total -- $2 million --- CLR

It looks like CLR picked up about 7,221 acres.

The following best enjoyed with volume at twice normal:

Finders, Keepers, Tom Stormy Trio Featuring Rhythm Sophie

So, Who's In The Bakken -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-26T13:22:00.001-06:00

The following is a list of advertisers in the Williston Herald glossy, "Talkin' the Bakken," the Year in Review, 2011, December, 2011.

Not "proofed" for typographical errors. I will gladly correct/edit any entry if asked. Groupings not entirely accurate. Not placed in any particular order.

Neset Consulting Service: Tioga
PLS Inc site consulting: Epping

Marquis Plaza & Suites
Missouri Flats Inn
Solsten Hotel: now open, Trenton, ND -- man-camp
M&M Cafe: Sidney

Primo Truck Park: truck stop; Sidney, MT

Western Cooperative Credit Union
ASB, American State Bank: Williston
Capital Solutions Bancorp, no physical address provided
Riviera Finance: Williston
Williston Basin/Mid-North America Stock Fund
Papineau Insurance: Tioga
DAWA Solutions Group: "701"

PCS LLC, Business Brokers
Clark & Associates Land Brokers, Inc: throughout the midwest and west
Pifer's Auction and Realty: Moorhed (sic), MN; Bowman, Bismarck
Empire Oil Company: Williston
Irish Oil & Gas, Inc: Bismarck
North Dakota Guaranty and Title Company: throughout the Bakken
Todd Kringen, private oil and gas mineral buying and selling: no physical address

Statoil
Hess
G3 Operating
Whiting

Ensign United States Drilling, Inc.: no physical address given

Armor Builders, Subcontracting and Turn-Key Solutions to all building needs
AgriComm Building: Williston
RAS International, specialized remote site structures for petroleum/mining industries, Alexandria, MN
Kleven Construction, Williston
American Builders: Williston, throughout ND
Advanced Building Services, Williston; Louisiana; Texas; California; Arkansas
Badlands Steel, Williston
ClearSpan Fabric Structures; no physical location given
Iseman Homes, Williston
Schutl Homes;Liechty Homes; Williston
Centennial Homes: Williston, Dickinson, Bismarck
Portable Crew Camps; no physical address given
Pierce: housing, RV, leasing: Billings, Great Falls, Kalispell
Dakota Custom Cabinets & Homes: Dickinson
Furniture & Interior Finishing Group: no physical address; "701"
Miller Insulation: Williston; throughout ND, UT, WY
E-Z Build Your Own: no physical address
Legacy Steel Buildings: no physical address
Bozeman Brick Block and Tile: Bozeman
REMS: off-grid housing: no physical address
Concrete Coatings: Williston

AES: civil engineering, structural and electrical engineering, surveying, mapping, throughout ND, MT
Morrison Maierle, engineering, surveyors; no physical address
Inland Tarp and Liner: no physical address given
Today's Tarp & Shoe Repair: Williston
Morrell International: staffing and lodging; no physical address given
Worker Camp Units: no physical address given
Mondak Portables: no physical address; "701"
Basic Rim Constructors: no physical address
Beamco, engineering and manufacturing company: "701"
Epic Engineering: "701"

Larson Electronics, LLC, lighting: Kemp, TX

Waste Control International: Williston phone number

Mac's Hardware: Bismarck, Minot, coming to Dickinson
Kenyon Noble, lumber, hardware: Bozeman

Kupper Chevrolet, Mandan, North Dakota; 2nd ad
Murphy Motors, Chevy, Cadillac, Buick, GMC, Williston
Murphy Rentals: Minot
CrankyApe.com: Powersport, RV and Marine Auctions; no physical address given
Rocky Toppers (toppers for pickups): Billings, MT
Arrow Truck Sales: no physical address
Badland Truck Sales: Glendive
Erickson Trucks N Parts, physical address not provided
Ajax To Waukesha Industrial Engine Repair: "701"
Watford City RV Rentals: Watford City

Mitchell's Oil Field Service, Inc; physical address not given
Basic Energy Services, Williston, Sidney, Glendive
FabcoPower, Chester NY 10918
Petroleum Services, Williston
Industrial Equipment, Williston
OilField Integrators, "701"; electrical contractors
Panther Inspection, drill pipe clean and visual; Williston phone number
GO Wireline: Williston
Frontier Wellhead: Williston, Watford City, Sidney; Colorado; Utah
Sanjel: Everywhere including Williston
Halliburton: Williston
Mud Masters Group: Glendive, MT
AWC, oil field, remote power: no physical address given
Wanzek: natural gas pumping, gathering, terminals: no physical address
JL Bryan Equipment, Inc; oil equipment, heaters: Perryton, TX
Lawlar's Hydro-vac Service: Baker, MT
Crane Solutions: Savannah, GA
Borsheim Crane Service: no physical address; in Williston
Interstate PowerSystems: Williston
Peterson Equipment (Pisten Bully, Thiokol, Formatic, Bmbardier): no physical address
Journey Energy Services: based out of Williston; no physical address; no "701" phone number
Altronic GTI Bi-Fuel: Minot, Dickinson, Bismarck
Tartan Controls, completions drilling services: Denver, Houston
Tioga Machine Shop: Tioga
BMP Enterprises, downhole monitoring: no physical address
EV: Downhole Video: no physical address
PTP Pro Tank: Minot
BTL, fabricators: no physical address
Missouri Basin Well Service, INC: "701"
J&L Pitliners: Sidney, MT

The Industrial Group, pipeline: Ray, ND
Border Steel, structural steel and pipe: Williston
Do-All Metal Fabrications: Glenburn, ND; Estevan, SK CAN; Nisku, AB CAN
MD Hose & Fitting: Sidney

Kotana Communications: throughout the Bakken; no physical address

Bakken Express, trucking: Tacoma, Washington
Diamond B Trucking, Inc: Plentywood, MT
DC&B Hotshot and Trucking: Williston
T. Montana's Hotshot Service: no physical address, ND, SD, T, CO, MN, WY
Golden Eagle Trucking: Sidney, MT
Overland Aerial Photograph, Williston

Party Bus, Williston

R Rooster BBQ, Williston

Flame Resistant Clothing, Wrangler, no physical address given
Horizon Resources, clothing: Williston, Ray, Fairview
Cowboy Way Western Store: no physical address
Beaver Creek Archaeology: Mandan

BNSF Logistics

Trinity Health: no physical address; Minot-based, I believe

Drug and Alcohol Testing: throughout the Bakken
Badlands Integrity Group, alcohol testing, more: no physical address, "701"

Wholesale Textiles: no physical address

Double Helicopters: Mandan,ND

MDU, utilities: Williston

McCody Concrete: "701"

C&D Water Services: Williston

Island At Rock Creek: Red Lodge, MT; leisure

Five (5) New Permits -- All Wells Released: Fracked! -- The Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-26T09:44:00.002-06:00

January 26, 2012, daily activity report --

Operators: BEXP, Crescent Point , Chesapeake, Whiting, Corinthian

Fields: Alger, North Souris

Three wildcats: one each for Crescent Point in Williams; Chesapeake in Hettinger; and, Whiting in McKenzie.

Seven (7) wells came off the confidential list. All were completed/fracked! But results were disappointing for several based on IPs, reported elsewhere. On the other hand, two were quite nice:

20091, 1,229, EOG, Horse Camp 2-11H, Dunn County
20227, 1,060, Whiting, Fladeland 14-18WH, Mountrail County

TYLER -- TYLER -- TYLER -- ALERT -- ALERT -- WIlliston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-26T06:40:00.000-06:00

ALERT -- TYLER -- ALERT

There is no breaking news on any huge well targeting the Tyler formation this morning, but I get a lot of questions about the Tyler formation.

I now have a definitive source.

The North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources has a great story about the history of horizontal drilling in the Tyler formation.

Go to this link and then click on the top story to get to another link to open a PDF file.

Or go direct to the publication, but you still have to click on another link to get the PDF file.

Again, a "tip of the hat" to Don for alerting me to this link as well as to 3,487 earlier links over the past three years.

North Dakota May Have Source For Manufacture of Ceramic Proppant -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-26T06:27:00.000-06:00

At the link, click on the top story at the right: Southwest ND Kaolinite Study

The vast majority of oil wells that are being drilled in the Williston Basin employ hydraulic fracturing as a completion technique.

These wells use, on average, three to five million pounds of proppant, be it natural sand or spherical ceramic beads, to keep these fractures open.

Because of the tremendous amount of product utilized in North Dakota, the North Dakota Geological Survey undertook 1) a study to find local sand deposits that would meet the criteria and could be used as natural proppant and 2) a study to find local clay resources (kaolinite) that could be utilized in the manufacture of ceramic proppant.

The study is on-going.

My hunch is that some entrepreneur between South Heart and Hebron is about to start a whole new industry, clay --> ceramic proppants. And unlike the Chinese proppants, ND ceramic proppants will be radiation-free.

By the way, one of the best little books I have ever read is Graham Cairns-Smith's book on the origin of life. It's a very, very short book. I think one can read it one evening. He provides a convincing scientific argument that God indeed used clay to fashion man. But it was a somewhat complicated recipe and required a few years to bake.

Yes, Virginia, There is Methane in Ground Water Wells -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-26T06:19:00.000-06:00

I would direct EPA and other faux-environmentalists concerned with natural gas in well waters to read the study in this month's issue of Geo News, the official publication of the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources.

When you get to that link, you can't miss the index on the right; click on the third story down with the word "methane" in the title.

Yes, Virginia, there is natural gas in well waters, but it doesn't come from fracking. The methane, or natural gas, comes from coal seams.

Zeus put natural gas in well water to ensure some good old political theater between the oil industry and the faux-environmentalists. If you know the history of the Trojan War (Homer's version, The Iliad), you will know that the gods participated, prolonging the conflict to enjoy the spectacle. And as much as Zeus thought the whole war was a lark, Hera took it very, very seriously. But I digress.

Numbers You Can Trust -- Sort Of About the Bakken, But Not Really

2012-01-26T06:07:00.001-06:00

Link here to a CBS Miami story.

This is a story about a new huge oil rig off Cuba but within "90 miles" of Florida operated by a Spanish oil company and jointly financed by the Chinese.

So, while our administration slow rolls our oil industry in the Gulf (no links; I'm tired of linking universal truths), bans oil from Canada, and promotes the Brazilian oil industry, China is moving into the Gulf "big-time."

But this is what caught my eye and why I enjoy following the Bakken:

Repsol is the the first of several international companies that will use the Scarabeo 9 to look for oil in the the Florida Straits, where the US Geological Survey estimates about five billion barrels of oil sit under the ocean floor. The Cuban government thinks the amount is much higher -- around 20 billion barrels.

In the Bakken:

CLR is one of many independent companies that will use the huge H&P rigs to look for oil in the Williston Basin, where the US Geological Survey esimates about 3.6 billion barrels of oil sit under the prairie plains. The CEO of CLR thinks the amount is much higher -- around 24 billion barrels.

One of those two indented paragraphs was written by a professional journalist; the other paragraph was written by an armchair observer of the oil industry.

A "tip of the hat" to Greg who sent me the link, where you can find him at Four-Fifty Gas.

A History of Horizontal Drilling in the Tyler Formation -- Williston Basin, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T23:03:00.000-06:00

At the link, click on the second story from the top at the right: a history of horizontal drilling in the Tyler Formation in the Williston Basin, North Dakota.

Talk about perfect timing, and a huge thank you to Don for sending me this link. I would have missed it.

It's perfect timing because I've been blogging about the Tyler off and on over the past few weeks.

COP: Profit up 66% Despite Production Drop --

2012-01-25T22:35:00.001-06:00

Link here.

I lost the bubble on this, but wasn't COP the one who put out a warning just a week ago saying their numbers would be down 20 percent due to natural gas price debacle? I'm sure it was COP, but I could be wrong.

ConocoPhillips' said Wednesday its fourth-quarter earnings rose 66% compared with a year earlier thanks to higher oil prices and despite a drop in production and weak refining profits.

The Houston-based company reported a profit $3.4 billion, or $2.56 a share, up from $2 billion, or $1.39 a share, a year earlier. Excluding gains on asset sales and other items, earnings were up at $2.02 a share from $1.32 a share. Adjusted earnings bested analysts' expectations of $1.76 a share thanks to better-than-anticipated exploration and production results and a smaller-than-estimated drop in refining profits, said Brian Youngberg, an analyst at Edward Jones.

Revenue rose 17% to $62.39 billion.

I guess we now know why Jim "Mad Money" Cramer keeps yelling his support for COP.

Huge Contract for McDermott -- Top Rigzone Story -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

2012-01-25T22:23:00.000-06:00

Link here.

I've followed McDermott for a very long time; it's fun to read a story like this.

McDermott International has received a momentous contract, worth about $2 billion, from Inpex for the Ichthys gas/condensate field offshore Australia. The surf contract is the largest subsea contract the company has received to-date.

The Ichthys surf project includes engineering, procurement, construction, installation and pre-commissioning of production flowline systems, a MEG injection system, plus start-up condensate transfer and fuel gas transfer flowline systems, control systems, as well as other associated SURF elements in water depths of up to 902 feet (275 meters).

I can't recall the last time I heard/read the word "momentous" when reporting a contract.

CLR On Mad Money -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T18:30:00.002-06:00

Link here.

Ten (10) New Permits -- An Incredible Report -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T18:09:00.001-06:00

Daily activity report, January 25, 2012 --

Operators: Petro-Hunt (2), Zenergy (2), G3 Operating (2), Liberty Resources, Hess, XTO, and Zavanna

Fields: East Fork, Murphy Creek, Blue Buttes, McGregory Buttes, Foreman Butte, Painted Woods, and Rosebud

G3 has two wildcats in Williams County.

Eight wells came off the confidential list; five were fracked.

Sixteen (16) wells were reported as plugged or producing, probably one of the longest lists in quite some time.

In addition, ten (10) more wells on DRL status reported IPs. All in all, an incredible report, including:

20160, 2,173, BEXP, Field 18-19 3H, Williams County
20845, 2,151, BEXP, Art 6-7 1H, Williams County

Hess reported some nice wells, as did CLR. They will be reported elsewhere.

But this was truly an incredible report, and typical of those going forward, I think. To recap:

10 new permits
8 wells came off the confidential list
16 wells reported as plugged or producing
10 wells on DRL status now completed and reporting IPs

That is a huge amount of activity by any standards.

Oh, by the way, "we" are back to 204 active rigs in North Dakota, tying the all-time high record.

Filloon: IPs and EURs -- The Bakken, The North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T14:05:00.000-06:00

Link here.

Mike Filloon provides more insight regarding this issue. The jury is still out but this is the third operator that I am aware of that says higher IPs correlate with higher EURs. (I remember someone sending me a comment that this was a "no-brainer," but smarter folks than "we" are still debating this issue.)

Other nuggets in this linked article:

The reason CLR tends to have lower 90-day IPs than other operators: CLR chokes back production.
CLR will increase the number of frack stages from 24.5 to 30

Based on what I've seen, 30 will be the new "norm"

Random Note on Recent CLR Completions -- The Bakken, North Daktoa, USA

2012-01-25T13:59:00.000-06:00

Another site lists thirteen (13) recent CLR completions. Some of these have been previously reported.

Dunn County, North Dakota
Dvirnak 3-7H - 2,115 BOE per day
Dvirnak 2-7H - 2,094 BOE per day
Entzel 1-26H - 1,726 BOE per day
Pletan 3-18H - 1,526 BOE per day
Grande 1-18H - 1,514 BOE per day
Pletan 4-18H - 1,618 BOE per day
McKenzie County, North Dakota
Durham 1-2H - 2,003 BOE per day
Mack 4-2H - 1,585 BOE per day
Palmer 1-25H - 1,534 BOE per day
Patterson 1-13H - 1,498 BOE per day
Richland County, Montana
Jeannette 2-11H - 793 BOE per day
Harold 1-14H - 632 BOE per day
Thelma 2-14H - 510 BOE per day

Those are some nice IPs for CLR.

Palomar Modular Buildings -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T11:51:00.000-06:00

In case some folks didn't see this -- it was sent in as a comment:

Palomar Modular Buildings is a direct manufacturer that can turnkey an oilfield man camp on a prepared site in a matter of weeks.

As a commercial builder of prefabricated modular buildings, Palomar has experience constructing dormitories, laundry facilities, recreation halls, commercial kitchens, dining facilities and much more. These complexes can vary from smaller 20-50 person man camps to 500-1,000 person man camps. Palomar has experience working with oil field producers to customize facilities to meet their needs.

204

2012-01-25T11:00:00.003-06:00

Not a record, but we are now back to the record number of active rigs drilling in North Dakota.

Who would have expected this, in the middle of the North Dakota winter? Whoo-hoo.

New Record for the MillionDollarWay Blog?

2012-01-25T10:53:00.002-06:00

I count at least fourteen (14) stand-alone posts so far today and umpteen updates of previously posted information.

For newbies, be sure to scroll down to catch all the new posts, and depending on how many posts/day your site shows, you may have to click on "older posts" to see the earlier posts of today.

It's an incredibly beautiful day in Boston. Actually Cambridge.

Notes To My Granddaughters

Coming up out of the "Harvard Square" subway/bus entrance, I was greeted by several Starbucks employees, offering passers-by buck-off coupons on bags of coffee. I grabbed three coupons and another four inside the coffee shop. In addition, for free, I was given a small cup of coffee from a portable coffee delivery system -- sort of looked like SCUBA gear on his back, and a rubber hose with a valve attached at the end. I think the whole interaction was less then 6 seconds and reminded me of a NASCAR fuel-only-no-tire-change pit stop. It was quite incredible. Six seconds, a free cup of coffee, and three coupons.

[Oh, yes, now I see them from the second floor window; there they are, two guys decked out in black with a yellow Starbucks icon on their front -- advertising Blonde -- one of Starbucks new blends -- and on their backs are those large SCUBA-like contraptions I mentioned earlier. Now that I get a better look, they are like huge bongo drums (single) with earth-tone colors, reminding me of murals on the Four Bears Bridge near Parshall, near New Town, North Dakota.]

I would wager that the Harvard Square Starbucks is one of the chain's most profitable and they don't rest on their laurels. The line inside the coffee shop can be 20 people long, and you are served in less than two minutes. The line forms along a high narrow "table" allowing one to rest carried items for a moment.

I am not a Starbucks fan as a rule. But if they put up new coffee shops like this one, they have a new long-time customer.

I hear they are adding other beverages. As mentioned in an earlier post, this particular Starbucks comes as close to the Yorkshire coffee houses I loved (and love) so much.

As I walked up the stairs from the subway/bus at Harvard Square, I thought about all the forks in the road over the years. how we end up where we do.

The Million Dollar Way in Williston -- as I've written before on this blog -- was my way out of town, hitchhiking cross-country three times, and the start of many, many conventional trips in addition. There weren't many forks in the road in North Dakota. Smile. It's a pretty straight shot once you get out of Williston; the only "forks," I guess, were the four compass points from the center of Williston. North to Regina. South to Rapid City. East to New York City. West to ... okay, west to Montana, and then southwest to Los Angeles.

I could have written "north to Alaska," but I didn't.

Most of the forks in my road were notable for the women that happened to be standing, sitting, sleeping, working, playing, at those sites, with the forks being time-stamped-GPS coordinates.

Time-stamped is the operative word. If I went back to those GPS coordinates today, the women would no longer be standing, sitting, sleeping, working, or playing there. Perhaps one exception, Collette; I hope she is doing well in her adopted shire. One has died, the one that did the most for me at a most important point in my life. One continues to travel the road with me, albeit often taking separate side trips. With another woman, a detour that will never be forgotten. We stopped just short of the cliff.

Three of the women changed my life in ways that cannot be summed up in a short post.

One woman did not change my life but she reminded me what life is all about. She invited me to run away to Morocco. But unlike Susan, I had already seen Morocco; and, like Susan, I was married.

Some of the women I never met in person: Emily Brontë, Virginia Woolf, Martha Gellhorn, and Kathleen Norris.

I was so stricken with Virginia Woolf's Mrs Dalloway, I typed the entire book in free verse. Martha Gellhorn was considered by The London Daily Telegraph, among others, to be one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century (cut and paste from Wiki).

The many women who crossed my path left incredibly long-lasting impressions and introduced me to sights and sounds, experiences and exclamations, I would not have experienced otherwise.

They all taught me so much.

One taught me something I have never, ever forgotten: "Write it down, look it up, do it now, and keep your patients out of the surgeon's hands."

Discussion Thread On Extent of the Bakken in Montana -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T09:16:00.001-06:00

Link here.

Yes, unfortunately, Virginia, there is no Santa Claus.

And, unfortunately, Virginia, the Bakken thins out.

This thread includes a link to a USGS Fact Sheet dated April, 2008.

That report is linked somewhere on my site; probably in several places.

2008? Perhaps time for an updated assessment.

This is probably the best site you will ever find on the geology of the Bakken. Smile. And it's all free.

First Thing I'm Gonna Do When I Get Back to the Bakken ---

2012-01-25T09:10:00.003-06:00

Go out and stare at the new Baker Hughes supersite; it should be completed by now.

Link here for financial results.

Baker Hughes Incorporated announced adjusted net income (a non-GAAP measure) for the fourth quarter 2011 of $534 million, or $1.22 per diluted share. This excludes an after-tax charge of $220 million ($0.50 per diluted share) related to the impairment of certain trade names. This compares to $0.77 per diluted share for the fourth quarter 2010, and to adjusted net income of $1.18 per diluted share for the third quarter 2011.

Adjusted net income for the year 2011 was $1.84 billion or $4.20 per diluted share, compared to $2.06 per diluted share for the year 2010.

Net income attributable to Baker Hughes (a GAAP measure) for the fourth quarter 2011 was $314 million or $0.72 per diluted share, compared to $0.77 per diluted share for the fourth quarter 2010, and $1.61 per diluted share for the third quarter 2011. Net income attributable to Baker Hughes for the year 2011 was $1.74 billion or $3.97 per diluted share, compared to $2.06 per diluted share for the year 2010.

There's not much I hate to read more than long paragraphs of numbers; my eyes glaze over. Time to take a break. First this video.

Back to Black, Amy Winehouse
There is a girls' group song from the 60's that has the very same chords; I'm looking for it and I'll find it eventually, but for now, this will be one of the dots on that bunny trail:

He's a Rebel, The Crystals
I wonder if Amy's story might be a bit different had she had a "Phil Spector" producer. In hindsight, they were made for each other.

And if Amy Winehouse was taking us back to the 60's girls' groups, Norah Jones is a country/western singer. Subtle. Sublime.

Cold, Cold Heart, Norah Jones

For Investors: 2012 Bull Rally Almost Over -- Analyst Gives Two Reasons

2012-01-25T09:03:00.001-06:00

Link here.

I have not read the story and won't be reading it.

I already know the two reasons. The reasons can be found here:

the first half of the president's speech last night
the second half of the president's speech last night

I no longer listen to presidential speeches from this administration, so if there was anything in the speech that might surprise me, let me know.

KOG: Speculation -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T08:57:00.002-06:00

And that's all it is, speculation.

Nothing at the link with any substance, but great headline: talk of a KOG buyout!

Williams Partners to Sell 7 Million Common Units at $63/Unit

2012-01-25T08:53:00.000-06:00

Link here.

Some numbers rounded as is standard at this site.

I don't have time now, but investors interested in dividends, the oil play, pipelines, etc, you may want to go to the link and other associated links. Lots of stories being written on this one and related.

North Dakota State To Delay Some Leasing -- The Story Has No Legs -- Great, Great Political Move -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T08:41:00.000-06:00

You can always count on the Dickinson Press to give good copy.

The newspaper reports that state may delay leasing some state land.

This is a non-story, but a very, very smart political move.

Mike McEnroe of Bismarck, a member of The Wildlife Society, said leasing the lands would be contrary to an agreement struck between then Gov. Ed Schafer and North Dakota’s congressional delegation that became federal law in 1998.

Now, if only The Wildlife Society would talk about all the migratory birds, whooping cranes, and eagles that will be killed by wind turbines. Sometimes, what is not said/done, is more newsworthy that what is said/done.

Mike: tell me you don't support wind turbines!

Compare Hess' Production vs CLR Production Change Over Time

2012-01-25T08:32:00.000-06:00

From Hess press release:

oil and gas production was 367K boepd 4Q11 vs 420K boepd 4Q10 -- say what? Libya?

CLR

80,000 boepd 4Q11; 34K 3Q11 -- say what? Bakken?
who dat dat drilled dat?

Fast and Furious -- Updating As Fast As Possible -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T08:24:00.007-06:00

Earnings Central: where all the updates are going -- COP, HES, OXY, and more ... COP beats estimates ... huge! HES looks NOT SO good ..... Libya? I haven't read the report ... first notes ... will correct as time goes along ...

Zacks:

Hess’ third-quarter 2011 results were lower than expected with earnings per share of $1.11 per share considerably lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.40. The quarterly result was also below the adjusted year-earlier earnings of $1.31. The underperformance was mainly due to lower production realized in the reported quarter.

The company has a history of negative earnings surprises, lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last 4 quarters. The company recorded a minimum surprise of negative 1.62% in first quarter 2011 to a maximum of negative 20.7% in third quarter 2011. On an average, the earnings surprise stood at negative 8.4%.

Great oppportunities to buy on pullbacks? Be advised of disclaimer; this is not an investment site. It is a friendly discussion among friends.

OXY:

Occidental Petroleum Corp. said Wednesday that its net income jumped 34.8 percent in the fourth quarter as it increased production while world oil prices rose.

The Los Angeles oil and gas company reported earnings of $1.63 billion, or $2.01 per share, for the final three months of 2011. That compares with $1.21 billion, or $1.49 per share, for the same part of 2010. Revenue rose 19.2 percent to $6.03 billion.

Analysts expected earnings of $1.94 per share on revenue of $5.47 billion, according to FactSet.
Occidental increased worldwide oil and gas production by 4.8 percent in the quarter to a company record of 748,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

What peak oil?

Bakken: Another Great Update -- Jobs Growth in North Dakota -- Spectacular -- Not My Word -- Take It From Others

2012-01-25T08:17:00.000-06:00

Link here to CarpeDiem. com.

The state of North Dakota continued to lead the country in December with: a) the lowest state jobless rate at 3.3%, and b) the highest annual rate of employment growth in December at 5.7%, which also set a new all-time North Dakota record for the largest 12-month percentage employment increase since monthly records started back in 1990. The 5.7% over-the-year percentage job gain for North Dakota in December was almost twice the 3% pace of job growth in Utah, the state with the second highest job growth in 2011.

Job growth in the state's booming oil industry was spectacular, with almost a 40% increase in mining jobs in 2011. Further, North Dakota has nine counties with jobless rates at 2% or less for November, and one county - Williams County, at the epicenter of the Bakken oil region - with a jobless rate less than 1%.

There is much more at the linked site.

Snowbirds On The Road -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T06:54:00.001-06:00

Minnesota/South Dakota migratory birds reporting from New Mexico; followed US Highway 83 --

Their road report:

From Minnesota and then to central South Dakota; Hit US-83 headed south through Nebraska, Kansas.

Could not believe the number of wide load trucks heading north. Most all had pilot cars and had big stuff.

One would have to assume it was headed to the Williston area. Anyway, arrived at our winter home in New Mexico, much warmer than northern Minnesota.

That's interesting about the "pilot cars."

We don't see many "pilot cars" in the Bakken, so what you saw there had to be really big.

Thank you for the report.

On the Road Again, Willie and Friends If folks want a more traditional, studio version, let me know.

Investopedia's Eric Sprott: Bullish on Gold and Energy

2012-01-25T06:46:00.000-06:00

Link here.

OXY and SLB mentioned.

The article is written for serious investors, certainly not my "cup of tea."

Bloomberg Article on The Bakken -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T06:25:00.000-06:00

Link here.

The gravel road that borders Dave Hynek’s North Dakota farm is designed to carry 10 tractor- trailer trucks a day. In a recent 24-hour period, about 800 passed by.

Some are traveling 90 minutes west to Williston, where schools Superintendent Viola LaFontaine expects as many as 3,800 students this fall, about 57 percent more than her primary schools were built to hold.

North Dakota’s economy outpaced every other state in 2011, with the fastest growth in personal income, jobs and home prices, according to Bloomberg Economic Evaluation of States, or BEES, index data. Yet the oil boom fueling the nation’s lowest unemployment rate also has a dark side. It’s pushing rural North Dakota’s housing, electric, water, police and emergency services to the breaking point.

COP, OXY, and HES Should Be Reporting Today

2012-01-25T06:22:00.004-06:00

COP: before mkt open at 8:00 EST
HES: time not supplied; SeekingAlpha -- earnings preview;

CLR: 80,000 BOPD Production; Increased Reserves by 40% -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-25T06:18:00.000-06:00

Some numbers rounded as is the usual case for this site.

CLR press release.

Continental Resources, Inc. reported production of 75,219 barrels of oil equivalent per day (Boepd) for the fourth quarter of 2011, a 57 percent increase over production of 48,034 Boepd for the fourth quarter of 2010 and an increase of 13 percent over production in the third quarter of 2011. Crude oil accounted for 72 percent of Continental 's fourth quarter 2011 production.

Is 80,000 bopd a big deal? CLR's 3Q11 daily production ... drum roll ... 34,000 boepd

So, for me, going from 35,000 to 80,000 in one quarter -- yeah it's a big deal

For those may not remember:

"Two years ago we announced a five-year plan to triple production and proved reserves by year-end 2014. Since December 2009 , we've already doubled production," said Harold Hamm , Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "We're clearly ahead of plan due to better well performance and increased operating efficiency."

China Has Recognized The Importance of Unconventional Oil -- Meanwhile, The US Looks to Shut It Down

2012-01-24T20:18:00.001-06:00

Link here.

In early January, China Petroleum Corp. struck a multi-billion dollar deal with Devon Energy for five major shale oil and gas plays. This is the third billion-dollar-plus investment in U.S. oil fields by a foreign oil company in the last three weeks — Spain’s Repsol YPF (REP.MC) entered into a $1 billion pact with SandRidge Energy Inc. to jointly develop oil fields in Kansas and Oklahoma, and France’s Total SA paid $2.32 billion to Chesapeake Energy for a stake in its Utica shale discovery in Ohio.

These foreign firms are on a buying spree in a mission to hedge against volatile energy prices and uncertain supplies. The interest in the shale plays stems from an asset acquisition strategy, but also from a move to obtain the technology and the management expertise that must be in place for shale drilling.

In an effort to emphasize the importance of shale exploration, the Chinese government has categorized shale gas as a separate natural mineral resource, as opposed to including it in the general oil and gas category. In June 2011, the government held its first auction for shale plays and a second one will soon follow.

In the U.S., we are dealing with a conundrum. The origins of fracing technology and horizontal drilling are not new and the technology has finally come of age. The data makes a powerful statement.

In July 2011 for instance, the Bakken shale produced 424,000 barrels of oil a day (b/d) compared to 453,000 b/d in Alaska. The Eagle Ford play in Texas produced 190,000 b/d in August 2011, compared to 3,100 b/d two years ago, and this output is expected to quadruple in the next five years.

NOG -- Dollar-Cost Averaging Since Inception -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-24T19:51:00.027-06:00

NOG has a most unique business model. I first talked about NOG's business plan two or three years ago.

For analysts who follow the oil industry very, very closely, this should be the easiest oil production company to project earnings and share price target; think of NOG as a trust but with some interesting twists. US oil trusts, once established, cannot add more wells. NOG, on the other hand is not constrained. A lot of wells are going to be drilled on NOG acreage over the next 20 years.

Be advised of the disclaimer for this blog at the sidebar on the right. This is not an investment site.

This is just a bit of rambling that would rise to the level of a Saturday morning discussion at the Williston Economart. This is not a recommendation to invest in NOG or any other company mentioned. I have owned shares in NOG off and on but do not hold any shares now and have no intention of buying any time soon.

I am an investor, not a trader.

I am probably the only one who still recommends dollar-cost averaging investing: investing the same amount each month.

I was curious how this would have worked out for Northern Oil and Gas (NOG) which was founded in 2007.

Just for the fun of it, using Yahoo!Financial, I imagined investing $100 in NOG at the beginning of every month starting on May 1, 2007, and going through January 1, 2012.

The total amount invested would have been $5,700. The investment would have resulted in 727 shares of NOG which on January 23, 2012, would be worth about $19,000. That's more than tripling one's investment in less than five years. Okay. (This was done quickly; numbers not checked; your results may vary.)

One can also compare investment returns among various companies on Yahoo!Financial. I compared NOG's five years with the past five years of several different companies. Yahoo!Financial returned these numbers:

NOG: 580%
AAPL: 380%
CLR: 400%
MSFT: 0%
CVX: 50%
WLL: 150%
T: -20%

Oasis has been around for less than two years; for two years:

NOG: 120%
OAS: 120%

An investor who watched the market closely and took advantage of the pullbacks could have done significantly better. Some pullbacks have been significant.

NOG's business model is unique in the Bakken. I discuss it elsewhere on this blog and there are numerous investment sites that have talked about NOG, and have recommended NOG, over the past few years.

I could have picked any company in the Bakken, but of those I checked, NOG was by far the best, barely beating CLR, and significantly beating WLL.

T and MSFT paid dividends which changes the parameters. NOG does not pay a dividend.

*******************

I wrote the piece above yesterday.

Overnight I got to thinking about this again. Since 2007, had one put in $100/month (plus $9.95 commission/transaction), one would now have almost $20,000. Makes me wonder why I didn't do that. Smile.

Global Warming Hits Davos, Switzerland --

2012-01-24T19:27:00.002-06:00

"....In the last 42 years, I have never seen so much snow....."

The rest is by paid subscription, but that says it all....

But most, if not all, of the story is here:

The snow is yards deep and continued to pile up Tuesday, despite a short afternoon respite. "In the last 42 years, I have never seen so much snow in Davos," the forum's founder, Klaus Schwab, tweeted on Sunday.

As I said earlier, in 2035, when I'm about 85 years old, they will be talking about a "new Ice Age" and Cher will be completing her umpteenth "Farewell Tour."

Ten (10) New Permits -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-24T19:13:00.000-06:00

Daily activity report, January 24, 2012 --

Operators: Petro-Hunt (4), Oasis (3), Hunt (2), XTO

Fields: Eagle Nest, North Fork, Crazy Man Creek, Parshall, Camp

Seven wells came off the confidential list; five were completed/fracked, reported elsewhere, including:

17636, 1,731, Oasis, Helling Trust 11-15H, Mountrail
20139, 1,122, MRO, Oren USA 31-6TFH, Mountrail

Four wells, previously on DRL status, reported IPs, none particularly remarkable.

Apple: Incredible Numbers

2012-01-24T16:23:00.004-06:00

Update

Apple clearly ahead of XOM in market cap --- #1 now.

UP 6% today.

Original Post

Steve Jobs is smiling in iHeaven.

Crushes estimates.

37 million iPhones sold. The highest estimate I had seen was 30 million and that was raised in the last few days.

Apple computer sales up 60% in Asia.

Profit margins blow away estimates: 45%.

New York Times drools.

Stay stoked.

Peak Oil? What Peak Oil?

2012-01-24T15:07:00.003-06:00

Link here to Oil and Gas Journal.

Increased production through 2035. I'll be about 84 years old.

By then, probably a lot of stories on a "new Ice Age." Cher will be doing one more "Final Tour."

More to follow.

Finally We Know Who Can Be Credited With The Fossil Fuel Gains -- It's Not Harold -- All About the Bakken

2012-01-24T13:05:00.000-06:00

Who claims credit?

Click here to a Bloomberg article.

If I remember, I will cut and paste a bit of the story here in case the link breaks, but I want folks to guess who claims credit.

One hint: he piloted the lead helicopter that crashed into the compound when and where OBL was killed. His wife piloted the back-up helicopter, which took all commandos and prisoners back to safety after destroying the disabled helicopter.

New Wells Reporting Today -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-24T12:48:00.000-06:00

New wells reporting so far today have been posted elsewhere; again, thank you Karen.

Two caught my eye:

21042, DRL, KOG, 20711 Mildred 94 1H, Epping, Bakken,
17636, 1,731, Oasis, Helling Trust 11-15H, Alkali Creek, Bakken,

The Oasis well caught my eye because of the IP.

The KOG well caught my eye because of its name. I have no idea how the name was chosen; perhaps after someone currently living in the area, and/or after a township so named.

But I did know a wonderful woman many, many years ago: Ms Mildred Manger, her family name. She never married. Well into her senior years (I would hazard to guess how old she was then) she was my Sunday School teacher at First Lutheran Church when I was in elementary/middle school. I don't recall the exact years.

But I do know that her parents homesteaded in the Spring Brook/Epping area, and I always associated her family with the families I read about in Giants in the Earth.

Regardless of how this well came to gets its name, it brought back pleasant memories, albeit not pleasant at the time. She was a very, very serious Sunday School teacher.

Slush Funds -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

2012-01-24T10:56:00.002-06:00

The "T" in the Boston metropolitan area is fantastic: this is the public rail and bus system. It is clearly one of the best systems in the world. It is showing its age, but all-in-all, it's a gem.

There are several rail lines, mostly subway, identified by various colors. The Green Line is the oldest and its quaintness is part of the charm. Even underground, one can walk across the tracks in front of stopped subways to get to where one is going. It's a bit disconcerting to see others do it and I've never dared; my wife would "kill" me if I tried, especially if the granddaughters were with me, which begs the question: would be it better to be "killed" by a spouse or "not killed" by walking across the "Green Line" tracks.

My granddaughters and I go everywhere on it. I can get anywhere in the metropolitan area for about $2.50; the granddaughters ride for free.

Unfortunately, the system is going broke and the city leaders are proposing to: a) raise fares dramatically; b) cut some lines entirely; and, c) reduce service on the weekends (sounds like the US Postal Service response to its own budgetary problems: raise price of stamps; close some post offices; eliminate Saturday service).

The city is holding public meetings to discuss the challenges and the proposed solutions. The Boston Globe dutifully covers the story and the public meetings.

But one has to read fairly deep into the story, and even then, it is glossed over, but the reason the "T" is in such financial trouble is because the surplus that the "T" generated each year over the years was used to pay for the highway system that was put "under" the city of Boston some years ago. It was known as the "Big Dig" and was the source of financial overruns, shoddy work, probably "fraud" somewhere in there, but I've long lost the bubble on the Big Dig.

I just find it incredible that the city leaders allowed a gem to be hurt in such a significant way, to pay for a highway system. Boston is one of the centers of the "green movement" and the last place that public transportation money should be used to subsidize highways, it seems, would be here.

But that's what happens when city leaders, state governments, and the federal government see a pile of unused money.

The "T" should have operated at a deficit all those years to ensure there was no money to steal.

But, for me, the two things that stand out: a) the liberal Boston Globe glosses over why the "T" is in trouble (I suppose the issue falls into "it is what is is"); and, b) the city is actually looking to dismantle one of their gems, bus by bus, line by line.

Sad.

[Speaking of which, I was sent a note today that says the state of North Dakota is spending all the money that is being generated from the oil industry. There is a "Legacy" fund but it is slowly kicking in. I don't have the tool set required to check North Dakota's savings and checking account, but if it's true that North Dakota has no savings account despite the huge amount of oil royalties, well, shame on them. The big question, I suppose, is whether the state of North Dakota is using a credit card or a debit card to fund its biennial budget. -- See first comment below. This may not be accurate.]

Crude-By-Rail: Some Great Aerial Photos -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-24T10:42:00.000-06:00

If you want to see some great aerial photos of the crude-by-rail terminals in the Bakken, click here to a corporate website.

For me, this is more evidence that a) the Bakken is not a flash-in-the-pan (assuming Obama does not kill it); and, b) the Bakken is bigger than we are being told.

There are several CBR terminals in operation or currently under construction from Minot to Williston to Dickinson.

The "N" Word -- Sorry

2012-01-24T09:46:00.003-06:00

Link here.

At first, the Chevy Volt was a novelty, and dealers couldn't get enough (usually one was all they got) -- not to actually sell but to bring folks into their show rooms.

Now some Chevy dealers don't want the Volt at all. It's become a nuisance.

I am sure the sales people are getting tired of defending the exploding battery, coal-powered car that fails California's elite emissions standards. Why spend all that time talking about a car that they won't be selling, wasting time that could be better spent talking about cars they might actually sell.

Also, there's that awkward fear that the car might actually explode at any moment. Even though the owner, Government Motors, says that the problem is resolved, or at least no longer worth studying.

From the linked site:

Some Chevrolet dealers are turning down Volts that General Motors wants to ship to them, a potential stumbling block as GM looks to accelerate sales of the plug-in hybrid.

For example, consider the New York City market. Last month, GM allocated 104 Volts to 14 dealerships in the area, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Dealers took just 31 of them, the lowest take rate for any Chevy model in that market last month. That group of dealers ordered more than 90 percent of the other vehicles they were eligible to take, the source said.

You have got to be kidding: allocation - 100 vehicles; dealer acceptance: 30.

For Investors Only -- NOG, CLR -- Huge Profit Margins -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-24T06:18:00.000-06:00

This is very, very interesting.

Let's say you took a data base of ALL publicly listed companies in the US. And then ranked them according to profit margins, highest to lowest. All publicly listed companies. And then wrote a story in a national investors newspaper/journal featuring five or six. And that newspaper/journal does not target any specific industry. What would you expect to find? Certainly not this:

High oil prices hurt at the gas pump. But they help at the wellhead pump. That has boosted profit margins at Continental Resources the largest landholder in the Bakken Shale oil and gas play in parts of North Dakota, Montana and Canada.

Continental generated almost 63 cents of profit for every dollar of sales last year, topping IBD's Screen of the Day for Monday, which ranks firms by that key metric.

Northern Oil & Gas, another Bakken Shale play, also ranked high, with 58.1%.

Credit card processor Visa ranked second, at a 60.2% annual margin, with MasterCard is a few rungs lower, with a profit margin just under 50%.

Of ALL the publicly traded companies in the US, NOG comes in at number 3. I remember a lot of hoopla about this company some months ago. Number 3.

And CLR #1.

Incredible.

Western North Dakota Issues -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T22:30:00.002-06:00

CarpeDiem.com has posted the "Western North Dakota Issues" list which went viral on Facebook a few days ago. I have been sent copies of that list by numerous readers but chose not to print it.

It was a list of "numerators," but no "denominators."

The big denominator is this: $1.5 billion to $2.0 billion is being pushed into eight counties in North Dakota.

The story is not that there are stories about problems in the oil patch, the story is that there are few stories about the problems.

Drugs? With $2 billion/month going into a rural state known for a meth crisis, who wouldn't expect stories on drug busts. The big story is that there are so few stories in the regional press about drug busts. The last one was several weeks (months?) ago about two idiots trying to break into a Williston pharmacy. Man-camps have zero tolerance policies, and if one loses housing in a man-camp, there are few alternatives. The oil companies and the trucking companies are not going to lose their golden geese to druggies. Everyone is getting drug tested. If positive, no job. No job, no money. No place to live. The winter keeps the riff-raff out. [Of course, that will change, if the city of Williston turns one of the largest facilities in region into a homeless shelter.]

Traffic fatalities? Hello, folks. Western Dakota is now one huge industrial park. If there were a 10 trucks/day on a local stretch of highway, there are now a thousand. And, yet, even with all that very, very dangerous 18-wheel traffic, one can go weeks without reading about a traffic fatality in the Bakken oil patch.

The Wal-Mart pallet story. "They" write that the Wal-Mart in Williston doesn't stock shelves any more. Hogwash. The shelves are well-stocked; the store is extremely well managed. The floor is a mess due to snow, mud, water, but that's true in every Williston store every year. But yes, Wal-Mart brings pallets of merchandise out to the aisles and folks empty those pallets before they can be stocked. What surprises me is how fast Wal-Mart, Home of Economy, have adapted to stocking merchandise so quickly. Wal-Mart brings it out front because their storage area is full; it makes more sense to bypass the storage room and bring it right out front. A paradigm shift. There would be screaming headlines if supplies weren't getting to Williston. Menard's is afraid to move to Williston; Wal-Mart took the challenge head-on.

I honestly do not remember any of the other bullets.

The list was from a PowerPoint presentation that was "designed" to catch the attention of law enforcement agencies.

But as noted, the story is not with what was said, but what was not said.

Oh, by the way, I am very, very impressed how well the federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies are staying on top of these challenges.

Oh, it just came to me. I don't recall if the the data point about prostitution was included in the western Dakota issues, but it hardly interests me. The law enforcement agencies will take care of these problems. And with no room at the inn, the whole profession is challenging to say the least. Not a lot of activity in the city parks during the winter.

Survey: N. America Land of Greatest Opportunity in 2012 -- All About the Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T22:27:00.000-06:00

Link here to Rigzone.com.

Oil and gas industry leaders have forecast improved performance and higher levels of capital expenditure this year, despite concerns over global economic instability, according to a new report on the future of the sector.

Increased investment across the industry will focus on exploration activity, with North America emerging as the area with the greatest opportunities in 2012.

Either on the blog or in private communication I have mentioned several times in the past two days a shortage of welders in the Bakken.

So, it was with a bit of joy to read this following just now:

Skills shortages are becoming more acute. According to the Economist Intelligence Unit's research, this issue comes out of the survey as one of the major obstacles to growth over the next 12 months. Last year, skills issues came fifth on the list of barriers and were only identified as a top three issue by 25 percent of respondents. This year, the issue has risen to second on the list, and has been identified as a key barrier by 34 percent of respondents.

Increased regulatory oversight is the number one barrier; the increased oversight is due to the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico which to the best of my knowledge caused no lasting effect. By the end of calendar year 2010, it was a non-story.

Never, Never, Never Give Up -- The Greenland-Cairn Saga -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

2012-01-23T22:12:00.002-06:00

Link here.

UK oil firm Cairn Energy is getting together with Norway's Statoil to explore for oil and gas in Greenland.

Cairn announced Monday that it has entered into a "farm down" agreement with Statoil for the Pitu block in the Baffin Bay Basin, west of Greenland.
After a number of failed drill attempts to find hydrocarbons in Greenland, Cairn believes that Statoil's background of exploring for oil in the Arctic will improve its chances of success in the region.

There are three stories that fascinate me: a) the Keystone XL story; b) the Greenland-Cairn story; and, c) the megaload story coming out of Idaho and Montana.

They fascinate me because they have one thing in common. They seem to be the epitome of "never, never give up."

A fourth story fascinates me: The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha (Spanish: El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha).

Johnny B. Goode, River City Rumblers, Australia

What's a Brand Worth? How Much Does a Bakken Well Cost? Enquiring Minds Want to Know

2012-01-23T22:02:00.000-06:00

This is what blogging is all about.

I would never pay attention to some of these stories if I wasn't blogging.

People talk about the value of a brand name: what Coca-Cola is worth? What is Apple worth? Just the brand name?

What is the value to an oil exploration and production company to say they are in the Bakken? I have no idea, but a headline story in Rigzone.com today: Magnolia Petroleum Plc announced an update on the two Eckelberg wells in the Bakken today, suggests that it means something.

Magnolia is participating with Marathon who is the operator of these two wells.

How much participation does Magnolia have in these two wells? Drum roll....

Eckelberg 14-23H infill well in Dunn County, North Dakota (0.53367 percent working interest) in partnership with Marathon Oil Company, located in Sections 14 & 23-146N-93W.
Eckelberg 14-23TFH infill well in Dunn County, North Dakota (0.53367 percent working interest) in partnership with Marathon Oil Company drilling to the Three Forks Sanish Formation using the same pad as the above well.

Yes, that was a cut and paste, so no typographical error: Magnolia has half a percent working interest in each of these two wells. Half a percent interest and it rates a front page story in Rigzone. Am I missing something?

Ok, so that's the value of the "Bakken" name.

But we get a bit more from that article. We learn what a Bakken well costs these days.

The first well is drilling to the Middle Bakken Sandstone interval and is expected to be completed with a 30 stage frac at a cost to Magnolia of approximately US $43,232.
The second well is expected to be completed with a 30 stage frac at a cost to Magnolia of approximately US $44,933.

Rounding, that totals $90,000. Rounding, Magnolia has 1 percent interest in these two wells. A 30-stage Bakken well these days is budgeted for $9,000,000.

My third grade granddaughter is learning how to use "estimation" in math; the Bakken is providing a great opportunity to show how rounding makes things easier to follow.

Keystone XL Cancellation Benefited Obama's Very, Very Close Friend Who Would Like To Pay More Taxes -- Bloomberg -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T21:24:00.000-06:00

My eyes are glazed over, I am exhausted, answering so much e-mail and replying to so many comments -- I have to take a break.

CRC sent me this link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-23/buffett-s-burlington-northern-among-winners-in-obama-rejection-of-pipeline.html
and I was not going to post it. I know the story well and have posted it at least twice if not more often (I can think of at least three times, I guess, I posted this story or alluded to it), so I did not want to post it again.

But now I see it's on the front page of Drudge Report taken from/linked to Bloomberg -- so I guess I better link it.

So, consider it linked. I'm too tired to talk about it but maybe later.

And yes, the Keystone XL 1.0 is canceled. Killed. See my other posts explaining my terminology. Keystone XL 1.0 was canceled some time ago. It was canceled due to an unusual coalition of folks in Warren's home state, and perhaps his home town.

The president just killed Keystone XL 2.0.

They are now working on Keystone XL 2.1 and possibly Keystone XL 3.0.

Keystone XL 2.1 could be voted upon by the states and / or Congress. Keystone 3.0 will be presented to the president after the election.

Regardless, the earliest TransCanada says Keystone XL X.X will be operational is now 2014.

Plenty of time for Enbridge and Warren to keep on doing what they're doing.

Keystone XL: The Ball Is In Congress' Hands -- Let's See What They Do --

2012-01-23T20:16:00.000-06:00

Link to Bismarck Tribune.

My hunch: more political theater.

In the back rooms, the following deal will be made: House of Representatives will pass the bill, or at least try to get a floor vote, with the understanding that Harry Reid won't put it on the Senate calendar until after the election.

From the linked story:

Congress has the authority to vote for approval of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline project, according to a nonpartisan legal analysis released last week.

The Congressional Research Service, which provides policy and legal analysis to committees and members of Congress, released its legal analysis on the authority of Congress to regulate foreign commerce late Friday.

Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., said the analysis provided by the CRS provides strength to Congress' efforts to have the pipeline project approved.

Williston Makes Forbes Fastest-Growing Small City List -- Williston, North Dakota, #6 -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T19:11:00.000-06:00

Never in my wild dreams would I have expected to see Williston on a "fastest-growth" list!

A big "thank you" for sending me this link to Forbes magazine.

The Villages, Florida, #1.
Pecos, Texas, #2.
Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, #3.
Boone, North Carolina, #4.
Heber, Utah, #5.
Williston, ND, #6.
Gillette, Wyoming, #7.
Laramie, Wyoming, #8.
Andrews, Texas, #9.
Elk City, Oklahoma, #10.
Vernal, Utah, #11.
Hobbs, New Mexico, #12.
Rock Springs, Wyoming, #13.
Jackson, Wyoming, #14.
Oxford, Mississippi, #15.

Eleven (11) New Permits -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T17:56:00.000-06:00

Daily activity report, January 23, 2012 --

Operators: Triangle (2), Oasis (2), Marathon (2), BEXP (2), CLR, Gadeco, Whiting

Fields: Ranch Coulee, Reunion Bay, Epping, Aler, Squires, Sanish

Triangle has two wildcats in Wiliams County.

Eleven wells released from confidential list and reported elsewhere earlier today. The list included a monster well.

Chesapeake To Cut Natural Gas Production -- Impact On the Bakken?

2012-01-23T17:16:00.002-06:00

Link here.

Faced with decade-low natural gas prices that have made some drilling operations unprofitable, Chesapeake Energy Corp. says it will drastically cut drilling and production of the fuel in the U.S.

Drillers had already begun to shift their drilling activity toward shale formations and other regions that produce oil and other liquid hydrocarbons. Strong global demand has kept oil prices high and made these drilling operations extraordinarily profitable.

Chesapeake said it would cut its current activity in so-called dry-gas regions by half, to 24 rigs, by the second quarter. That's 67 percent fewer rigs than an average of 75 rigs the company had in use last year.

Some suggest this may free up some workers.

I wonder if this could free up some frack spreads. If so, North Dakota could benefit. I would assume fracking shallower natural gas wells is different than fracking deep oil wells in the Bakken, but I suspect the skills are transferable. The equipment would be different.

Raymond Center Being Considered for Homeless Shelter -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T16:10:00.003-06:00

Bad, bad, bad idea.

Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown, Jim Croce
If folks are in Williston having arrived looking for a job and don't have one, they need to move on. Idle hands -- illicit drugs, fights, etc.

If folks are in Williston with a (high-paying) job, they need work with their employer for a place to stay, and/or hotel, motel, or man-camp.

It sounds very, very hard-hearted, but life is not fair, and the city is inviting additional problems, not the least of which is removing a recreational facility.

Helping folks move on can be done humanely with the help of a social worker and/or the clergy, with the funds that would be used for a homeless shelter to pay for transportation back home.

Finally: Williston, Heart of the Bakken -- $1.3 Million for the Parks

2012-01-23T16:07:00.000-06:00

Link here to Williston Herald.

The 1-cent sales tax voters approved last November to go to the Williston Parks District will be spent on area parks and facilities.

The board took a bold step of approving $1.3 million in improvements to existing parks, including more than half a million dollars for new bathrooms at Harmon, Davidson and Recreation parks and $125,000 for a playground at Harmon park.

Data points:

1-cent sales tax begins in April, 2012
Estimates range from $4 million to $10 million
half of the sales tax increase goes to a new 125,000 sq ft recreation facility
half designated to maintain and improve the park district
playground improvements will be sized to handle a city population of 35,000 to 40,000

From the Dickinson Press: Man-Camps Needed in Dickinson -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T14:06:00.001-06:00

The headline:

From boom town to ghost town: Dickinson without man camps

The lede:

Last week was big for man camps. Dunn County has approved 5 camps that would hold more than 1,200 people. Now those people will have a place to live while they work, hopefully keeping them out of Dickinson rooms.

Don’t get me wrong. Without those workers there would be no one to collect the vast amount of oil in the Bakken, and North Dakota wouldn’t be experiencing such success. With the unemployment rate hanging around 3 percent and wages starting at $10 an hour, there isn’t much to complain about.
Let me try that again. Rent prices are sky-high, traffic is backed up half the time I want to go to lunch and people can’t build housing fast enough to meet the demand. How ironic it is then that people complain about these things when they don’t want man camps in Dickinson. Why is that?

The ending:

So instead of filling up man camps, the employees that are going to come here anyways will fill up our hotel rooms and apartments, leaving no apartments for the locals. If you find a place to live, which is doubtful, expect to pay $1,000 for a one-bedroom apartment per month. And forget getting a hotel room unless you want to dish out $150 to $200 a night. Those prices will remain until the construction industry can catch up, and that could take a year or two.

Like I said, I’m glad oilfield workers are here. We need them, but we also need a place for them to stay. Dickinson needs man camps, and some may have to go in someone’s backyard. I hope someone is willing to be the better “man” (or “woman”) and steps up. The city officials are willing to do it, so why not its people? This city seriously need an attitude adjustment if they are looking out for the future good of the city. Otherwise, Dickinson could see itself turn into a partial ghost town.

Comment: well said.

Minot 2012 -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T14:00:00.002-06:00

If I remember, I will use this "page" to track Minot construction projects and other "events" in the Minot area for the calendar year 2012.

This is a great article with which to start, one that was posted the other day.

United Pulse Trading will be building a new facility at Minot's Ag Park Complex to process peas, beans, and pulses. The facility is expected to begin operations by "harvest season 2012" with an annual capacity of approximately 100,000 metric tons per year.

Minot-area: Berthold to get 60 percent bigger.

Mayor Alan Lee said that Five Stone Development is moving along with plans to place a subdivision just north of the city that in all likelihood will increase Berthold's population by 60 percent immediately.

Lee said the bulk of the development will be permanent housing subdivisions.

According to is website, Five Stone Ranch will have "200-plus" homes available in 2012.

January 27, 2012: BNSF opens $30 million yard, east of Minot, Gavin Yard.

TransCanada Mulls Bakken Opportunities -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T13:45:00.000-06:00

I think this has been referenced before, but perhaps not with such clarity.

The Cushing MarketLink is the final leg of the Keystone XL project, from Cushing, OK, to Port Arthur, TX. TransCanada says that segment cannot stand alone as a "pipeline" transporting oil at Cushing to the Gulf. It can only "work" as part of the Keystone XL. The linked article does not say why, but I bet it has to do with pumping stations.

However, it is obvious TransCanada has the easements for a pipeline from Cushing to Port Arthur, which raises the question of "why not put in a parallel pipeline to just carry Bakken light oil?" And that is exactly what TransCanada is mulling, but they can't be more specific.

Meanwhile, they will present Keystone XL 2.1 or 3.0 to the Feds in September/October, 2012, just before the election on November 6. My hunch is that this is the timeline:

October 30, 2012: the package is mailed to Washington, DC
November 1, 2012: the package arrives in the mailroom at Foggy Bottom
November 2, 2012: the package is delivered to the top floor, State Dept
November 3 - November 5, 2012: the package remains unopened on Hillary's desk
November 6, 2012: the package is opened early in the morning to take their minds off the election
November 7, 2012: the Keystone XL is ..... denied once again (either out of spite for having lost the election; payback to faux-environmentalists for having won the election)

And so it goes.

The Helis Grail -- Some Monster Wells in the Grail -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T12:25:00.003-06:00

Yes, it's the Helis Grail!!! They will be gabbing about this one for weeks. It looks like the Grail is a sweet spot for the Three Forks. This is exactly what keeps oil men excited about the industry.

I've just posted the most recent wells that have been released from confidential status. Another big thank you to Karen for all her work.

Of the nine wells that came off the confidential list, five were fracked/completed, including these two:

19898, 2,421, Helis, Gabbert 3-3/10H, Grail, Bakken, 27 stages, 3.3 million lbs; about half/half
20305, 3,431, BEXP, Charlie Sorenson 17-8 2H, Alger, Bakken,

I am eager to see the results of this one, right in the bull's eye of the Bakken:

20717, DRL, BEXP, Hilly 22-15 1H, Camp, Bakken,

But back to the ~~Holy~~ Helis Grail, this is the production data:

s7/11
t10/11
October, 2011, 25 days: 40,037 bbls of oil
November, 2011, 30 days: 28,372 bbls of oil
Cumulative for less than 2 months: 68,409 bbls.

Lynn Helms says ND Sweet is averaging about $85/bbl --> $5.8 million

Check out the Grail field here:

Grail oil field is a 30-section oil field just west of the reservation; the field currently has two rigs on site (posted April 26, 2011).

Back on March 3, 2011, this was reported:

17722, 2,068, Helis Oil and Gas, LLC, Henderson Federal 4-26/35H, Grail, Bakken; TFS, 35K in 41 days; ~ 24-stage fracs 9/10; t1/11;
But this is the "biggie" in Grail, section 17-149-95:
18448, 2,429, Helis Oil and Gas, LLC, Andrecovich 5-17/16H, 24-stage frac; TFS, tested, 9/10; 129K in 4.5 months; 20K/month; s4/10; t9/10; cum 210K 11/11; 24 stages; 3 million lbs; half Ottawa sand; half ceramics

If anyone knows of any Bakken Pool well that has produced in excess of 40,000 bbls in less than 25 days, I would be happy to get comments.

By the way, this Helis well is in the wings, waiting to debut:

19894, DRL, Helis, Gabbert 4-2/11H, s4/11;

A Tsunami -- North American Crude Oil Production To Surge Through 2016 -- All About The Bakken

2012-01-23T11:52:00.001-06:00

Link here to PennEnergy.

BENTEK Energy, a leading energy markets information and analytics company, today announced a new Market Alert, Crude Awakening: Shale Boom Hits Oil, which reports U.S. and Canadian crude oil production will grow 3.1 million barrels per day, or 36%, over the next five years.

Data points:

most of this production will be light or intermediate crudes
crude oil imports from Canada to the US will rise to 900,000 bbls/day (let's round that to a million)
crude oil supply will outpace demand
downward pressure on US oil prices

“This supply growth will have a profound impact on the U.S. oil market and energy policy,” noted Adam Bedard, senior director of energy analysis at BENTEK Energy. “The resurgence of U.S. oil production should greatly reduce the need for foreign oil over the next five years.

This will be a tsunami.

Ramblings From the Bakken -- Notes to the Granddaughters -- New York Times Article on American Crystal Sugar

2012-01-23T11:27:00.005-06:00

A note was sent to me over the weekend, more precisely this morning, regarding the links to the Minot and the Bismarck stories in the "lost decade" post. His observations back up what I said about Minot:

"Minot is going to become gridlock this summer, everybody will want everything and nothing will get done. All the flood work will start by the city, private investment will flow in and the fight for resources will be huge. We are already limited on how much concrete we can get each day."

Actually a lot will get done; it just won't seem like enough will get done. That's why God invented time: otherwise everything would happen at once.

It should be noted that there is no indication that the Bakken will slow down: we're back to 203 rigs, just one shy of the record. After seeing the number drop to 199 the other day, I am quite surprised that in the middle of the winter, the number has bounced back.

Notes to My Granddaughters

Link here to a New York Times on union lockouts.

I have no dog in this fight except that of a spectator, like a spectator at a boxing match. It is incredible, I think, how "attractive" boxing was in this country some years ago (think: Muhammad Ali). I didn't get it then; I don't get it now. I was reminded of the role boxing played in national sports some years ago when I happened to catch American Gangster on cable the other evening.

I thought the linked story would be a bit more general in nature, but it turned out to be a story, for all intents and purposes, on the lockout at American Crystal Sugar, the nation's (the world's?) largest sugar beet processor. The writer did talk a bit about recent lockouts in professional sports, but I don't recall any other example.

The occasional American Crystal Sugar lockout story reminds me of a boxing match: both will come out bloodied, and I'm not sure if either side will benefit all that much when it's over. But it does "show" the frustration -- and perhaps that's it -- it's no longer about what's best for either, but it's simply frustration with "the system."

So, I link it here because anything about North Dakota that hits the national news I find fascinating.

Some years ago I was reading a biography of Ernest Hemingway. There was a very short vignette in the biography in which Hemingway runs into a young woman from North Dakota while both were in Spain. I don't have the book with me, but if I recall, the woman was from Williston. At the time I tried tracking down more information on that little vignette but nothing came of it.

So, now I'm reading a new biography of EH (as the pros refer to him): Paul Hendrickson's 2011 National Book Critics Circle Award-winning book -- Hemingway's Boat: Everything He Loved in Life, and Lost, 1934-1961. I've read most (?) of the most important biographies of EH, including those by three of his four wives. (I don't know if all four wrote biographies; it seems to me they did.)

The Hendrickson book is surprisingly good. Wonderful writing. And, then, incredibly, a connection with North Dakota. The 35-page chapter, "Shadow Story" was all about a would-be, wannabe, writer from White Earth, North Dakota, who sailed with Hemingway the first year the famous writer had his new / first boat, Pilar. As noted, the chapter is 35 pages long and takes up a significant amount of space in this 467-page book, not including extensive notes. All other biographers have captured this 10-month period of time in a throwaway sentence, or perhaps a footnote in Hemingway's life, but Hendrickson has captured the essence of Hemingway, and of a wannabe writer, a North Dakota farm boy who had never been on a "ship" until that summer with EH.

Arnold Morse Samuelson is not someone I would have wanted to be near as based on what the author writes about him. The biographer talks with his daughter Dian: "Could he never recover from Hemingway? I don't know. Did he feel he could never live up to what he wanted for himself as a writer, after being on Pilar? She paused. "What I think I now know about him is that his whole life was overwhelmed by that year with Hemingway. Nothing was ever the same."

Clearly Samuelson had his issues before he met Hemingway, but just the same, he never did recover, nothing was ever the same, after that near-year with EH.

I assume most folks have a summer, a winter, a year, a period in their lives from which they will never recover, or after which nothing will be the same. For most, it's a "coming of age" story. For me, it was the summer I sold dictionaries door-to-door in Westfield, New Jersey. That was absolutely the most challenging thing I had done in life up to that point, and, looking back, nothing since has been more challenging, including medical school and residency. Rarely a day goes by when I don't think back on that summer. I ~~would~~ could never do it again, knowing what I know now. But then.... Unfortunately there is no YouTube video of Garth Brooks singing "The Dance."

And yes, that summer developed into a coming of age story for me, also, but it occurred somewhat later.

203

2012-01-23T08:25:00.002-06:00

One short of the record: 204.

I'm actually somewhat surprised to see it back up to 203 during the middle of the winter. But hey, I'm not complaining.

Thank you to Charley for sending me the note; I had not gotten around to checking the NDIC site yet.

For Investors Only -- HAL, WMB, OKE -- Idle Rambling, Market In General -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-23T06:30:00.000-06:00

Some odds and ends while I have some free time.

HAL: 4Q11 earnings up 50%. Earnings jump said to be due to boom in American shale.

I always find it interesting what I don't hear talked about on CNBC.

OKE: as low at $60 this past year; now up to $84. The chart is quite fascinating -- check out the one-year view.

OKE: recently announced a healthy increase in its quarterly dividend.

OKE increased the quarterly dividend to 61 cents per share of common stock from 56 cents per share, a 5-cent-per-share, or 9-percent, increase, effective for the fourth quarter 2011, payable Feb. 14, 2012, to shareholders of record at the close of business Jan. 31, 2012. "This latest dividend increase is higher than the guidance increase of 4 cents per share that we provided in September 2011 and reflects the continued strong performance in our ONEOK Partners segment, which has resulted in increased distributions to ONEOK from the partnership ...

WMB: the one-year view is not as striking as that of ONEOK but one could have bought WMB as low as $22 this past year; it's now around $28. WMB is not as striking because Williams split up the company: oil exploration, and pipeline and I believe both companies will pay a dividend (but I don't know). It would be interesting if WMB hits its old high despite splitting off its exploration and production segment.

WMB: the most recently announced quarterly dividend increase was not much, but the dividend is now double from what it was a year ago. In addition, WMB says it will increase its dividend every quarter going forward. That press release is really bullish.

The board of directors has approved a regular dividend of $0.25875 on the company’s common stock, payable March 26, 2012, to holders of record at the close of business on March 9.

The first-quarter 2012 dividend is more than double the $0.125 per share the company paid to shareholders a year ago. The most recent quarterly dividend the company paid was $0.25 in December 2011.

Williams plans to increase its dividend more frequently – with increases every quarter. As a result, the company increased its full-year dividend forecast to $1.09 per share for 2012. That is 41 percent higher than the full-year dividend Williams paid in 2011. The company’s previous 2012 dividend forecast was $1.03 per share.

Moving to quarterly increases is consistent with the expected growing cash distributions Williams is receiving from its significant ownership interest in Williams Partners L.P. . Strong business fundamentals and growth outlook within Williams Partners’ businesses are driving the expectation of continued strong distribution growth.

Be advised of the disclaimer for this blog. This is not an investment site. I just enjoy blogging and sharing information easily found on the internet. As noted several times, if I post something that doesn't look right, it may be a typographical error; check it out; let me know.

COP: I have not seen anything new regarding the breakup of COP (upstream from downstream). I believe this is to conclude in 2Q12. Here's an old (last summer) CNNMoney/Fortune essay on the breakup.

The announcement last month that ConocoPhillips plans to break up into two separately traded companies took Wall Street by surprise, raising uncomfortable questions as to Big Oil's raison d'etre.

....other companies, namely BP and ExxonMobil, could soon find themselves under pressure from their shareholders to follow suit, forever changing the energy landscape.

Up until now, it was widely accepted that being bigger was the key to being a better oil company. That view was taken to its logical extreme in the late 1990s when the "Super Major" oil company was born. In the United States, Conoco merged with Phillips, Chevron merged with Texaco and Exxon merged with Mobil. In Europe, BP snapped up U.S. oil companies Amoco and Arco while France's Total acquired Belgium's Petrofina and fellow French oil company Elf Aquitaine. Only Royal Dutch Shell avoided the merger mania.

The reason for the mergers was clear -- oil prices had collapsed. In the late 1990s, oil traded down as low as $10 a barrel due to a myriad of events -- how soon I forget...

Others may want to confirm, but WTI spot is around $94; North Dakota Sweet is around $75 (SemCrude), but Murphy shows ND Sweet closer to $85. It sure will be nice when the bottleneck at Cushing is resolved. Links to various sites like SemCrude and Murphy can be found at my Data Links page. When you get there, scroll down just a bit to "oil prices."

I see the price of oil is up about a buck in futures, and the Euro is rising against the dollar -- which probably explains the move in oil. Even CNBC talking head was surprised by the Euro move, coming as it does with no firm announcement from Europe regarding the Euro.

Wow, Wow, Wow -- That Was Too Close For Comfort -- And Overtime In The Second Game -- Absolutely Nothing To Do With The Bakken

2012-01-22T17:46:00.010-06:00

As predicted, but a whole lot closer than I expected.

Second game.

Overtime. Tied after a couple of possessions. New York Giants recover a fumble.

Bradshaw; two runs for ten yards. Down to the 10-yard line. A third run by Bradshaw. Down to the six-yard line. Centered. 3-point field goal attempt. Penalty, delay of game. 31-yard attempt. Ravens missed a 32-yarder earlier today. 36-yard attempt. The kick is on its way.... and it's good. Officially a 31-yard attempt.

First game.

Link here.

I completely misunderestimated the Ravens.

But how does one miss a 32-yard chip shot in the NFL?

Park Oil Field -- Update -- Reader Asked Question -- The Bakken, North Dakota, USA

2012-01-22T16:47:00.004-06:00

A reader asked a question about production of wells in Park oil field. I answered him. Technically I was correct, saying that production of recent wells closer to 700 bopd rather than 1,500 bopd.

I had forgotten that the record TFS well (based on IPs) was drilled in Park oil field:

20526, conf, Whiting, Smith 34-12TFH, Park oil field; the company says this is a record TFS well; production runs (still on confidential): Sept, 2011: 21,896; Oct, 2011: 29,153; Nov, 2011: 20,758

The well is still on confidential status, but those are the production numbers for the respective months. Still flowing at 20,000 bbls per month, with 29,000 bbls in October is incredible.

Park oil field is in southwestern North Dakota; it borders Bell oil field and is northwest of Zenith oil fields. This is the area where record bonuses were paid not too long ago.

Park oil field is a very small field, only 18 sections, but it is very irregularly shaped and with quite a bit of undesignated land around it, it will probably get larger.

As of this date:

12923, DRL, Whiting, Roxane 21-16H, s6/90; re-entry 11/11; t8/90 DRY; re-entry DRL; Park, Upper Bakken formation
20839, DRL, Whiting, Pronghorn State Federal 21-16TFH, Park, s6/11;
20404, conf, Whiting, Pronghorn Federal 21-14TFH, Park, s7/11; 13,000 bbls first full month
20131, conf, Whiting, Pronghorn Federal 34-11TFH, Park, s7/11; 10,000 bbls per month, 1st 2 mo
20526, conf, Whiting, Smith 34-12TFH, Park, producing 20,000 bbls per month, first three months
21170, LOC, Whiting, Talkington Federal 21-26TFH; Park,
21697, LOC, Whiting, Redmond Federal 21-28TFH; Park,
20672, conf, Whiting, DRS Federal 24-24TFH; Park, 21,000 bbls first month (unknown how many days)

There was nothing in the well file to suggest why the Roxane was dry the first time around, nor why they are re-entering.

Lost Decade

2012-01-22T15:12:00.003-06:00

Link here. After reading the story, the headline should have read: Another Lost Decade

It will be forever lost, who coined the phrase "lost decade," but I know I was among the first to use it.

I used the phrase in my first blog, which I deleted one evening in a fit of temporary insanity (wow, I lost some great posts).

The "lost decade" I was referring to was 2000 - 2010. I had periods of optimism in 2011 that "we" would be moving out of that "lost decade" into a decade of opportunity, but that, too, appears to be a mirage.

There will be a generation of Americans who will never work, at least not work in the area for which they had hoped. Another group of Americans, those aged 45+ and having been laid off from their life-long career, will also never work again.

For me, in the field that most interests me (energy), killing the Keystone XL may be the defining moment of 2012. I hope it is does not define the entire decade, but one wonders.

From the link above, in case the link breaks:

Five years after the credit crisis began, Western economies are confronting the prospect of a lost decade of growth, and international diplomats are warning the damage could get even worse if Europe allows its sovereign debt crisis to fester much longer.

International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde is heading to Berlin on Monday to urge action after the IMF called for member countries to provide the fund with $500 billion for new loans to help out troubled countries.

G20 officials also say Europe must double the size of its rescue fund to $1 trillion as a crucial step to stabilize financial markets and prevent the euro-zone crisis from spreading. Europe finance ministers meet on their debt plan on Tuesday.

The World Bank already sees the damage taking hold as European banks pull back their lending to emerging economies. Last week it slashed its growth forecast more than one percentage point to 2.5 percent for 2012, a pace not seen since 2008 when the world was last in a global recession.

Te Deum, Arvo PartFor Pat.

Where Should Developers Look in North Dakota? Bismarck, Minot -- Architects, Peas, Beans, and Pulses -- Why I Love To Blog, Reason #3,109

2012-01-22T13:17:00.005-06:00

Two stories here: one from Bismarck, and down near the bottom, one from Minot.

Link here to a Business Tribune article.

An out-of-state developer wrote me yesterday (or the day before) asking where he/she should start looking if he/she wanted to build housing units to take advantage of the Bakken. He/she was concerned about over-building, especially if the Bakken leveled off.

I suggested staying away from the Bakken specifically. He should look east to Minot, Bismarck, and perhaps, even Fargo.

Looking west is a bit more difficult; I didn't have any specifics then, because I am not that familiar with activity in Montana, but my hunch says Billings might be the best spot for a new developer. But that might be a stretch. I really don't know.

But back to North Dakota, and why I love to blog. Within 24 - 48 hours of getting that query and replying, the Tribune has a story of the Bismarck boom. The headline: new professionals bring boom to Bismarck.

Looking for work as an architect in Minneapolis, Christopher Thompson faced a stifling unemployment rate in his field. He was hired by JLG Architects and moved to Bismarck.

"At first, I wasn't sure," Thompson said. "I came in during a snowstorm."

Thompson spends his time on biking trails and visiting local coffee shops. He now likes the town and plans to stay.

"Work is steady and a lot is coming down the line," he said. "A lot of the population growth has trickled down, so there is need for schools and housing. Architecture in North Dakota is booming and attracting people from all over the country."

Drawn by jobs, more professionals, like Thompson, are moving to Bismarck, bringing higher incomes and spurring new development.

"I think what we have seen is that the number of professional services has really expanded in the last 12 to 18 months," said Kelvin Hullet, Bismarck-Mandan Chamber of Commerce president.

There especially is growth in services related to the Bakken oil field, Hullet said.

Professionals like lawyers, accountants, architects and engineers are joining firms based in Bismarck and doing work for oil companies.

I wonder if the Dickinson Press editors have read this? I say this because it is professionals like Christopher Thompson who will help solve the problems with regard to transportation, highways, schools, air quality, waste disposal.

Some professionals, no doubt, will help the new millionaires manage their gobs of money.

Bernie Madoff has plenty of time to help answer financial questions, although I don't know if he answers his mail. He can be reached at the federal correctional complex in Butner, North Carolina.

I don't have his mailing address, but I assume you can reach Jon "I simply don't know where the money is" Corzine by writing MSNBC and CNBC, where he once contributed regularly as a guest. I don't see him there any more.

Please be advised of the disclaimer for this blog.

Meanwhile, a Williston-based agricultural processing facility will be expanding -- this time in Minot.

United Pulse Trading, has indicated that the planned facility will include the installation of pulse processing equipment for beans, chickpeas, peas and lentils to augment its U.S. processing capacity at its Williston, ND production facility.

The new facility in Minot will also add additional capacity for value-added pulses production of food ingredient pulses flours, proteins, starches and fibres. It is expected by United Pulse Trading that the new facility, once commissioned in August 2012, will feature an annual capacity of approximately 100,000 mt per year and provide origination reach into central and eastern North Dakota, which is a region of substantial acreage of beans, peas and pulses.

The planned United Pulse Trading facility will be located at Minot’s Value-Added Agricultural Complex, which features North Dakota Port Services Inc. as an anchor tenant. NDPS provides, through Burlington Northern Santa Fe Logistics and BNSF’s Northern Tier Intermodal line, container services to the complex through its facility adjacent to BNSF’s main-line switch yard featuring daily service and four-lane highway access.

This expansion into Minot brings our company a tremendous amount of opportunity not only due to the city’s strategic location within a strong production area for pulse crops, but also because Minot is an important regional transportation hub,”....

BNSF is owned by Warren.

Another reason I love to blog. I know what beans are. I know what peas are. But I had never heard the word "pulses" in the same triad. According to wiki:

The term "pulse", as used by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), is reserved for crops harvested solely for the dry seed. This excludes green beans and green peas, which are considered vegetable crops.

Also excluded are crops that are mainly grown for oil extraction (oilseeds like soybeans and peanuts), and crops which are used exclusively for sowing (clovers, alfalfa). However, in common use these distinctions are not clearly made, and many of the varieties so classified and given below are also used as vegetables, with their beans in pods while young cooked in whole cuisines and sold for the purpose; for example, black eyed beans, lima beans and Toor or pigeon peas are thus eaten as fresh green beans cooked as part of a meal.

Pulses are important food crops due to their high protein and essential amino acid content.

Like many leguminous crops, pulses play a key role in crop rotation due to their ability to fix nitrogen.

A Most Unusual Story in Prairie Business -- Dabbling in Energy

2012-01-22T12:59:00.000-06:00

This is a most interesting (unusual?) story in Prairie Business. My hunch is this link won't be around long.

I'm posting it because of the information about the North Dakota coal industry which I know little about. I can check it out on Wikipedia but that won't give me any idea of what's really going on now, or the "buzz" as they say.

The other two parts of the article are on South Dakota ethanol industry, known to some as the Daschle Debacle; and the Minnesota wind-generated electricity industry, the killer of birds.

So, a little bit of something for everyone.

Here are some data points for the ND coal industry. Well, actually not much. The two first paragraphs, instead:

North Dakota’s four lignite mines produce about 30 million tons of coal every year. About 80 percent is used to generate electricity and the other 20 percent is used to make synthetic natural gas and other valuable byproducts such as fertilizer. The electricity serves about two million customers in North Dakota and surrounding states. More than 50 percent of the electricity generated in North Dakota is used in Minnesota.

The state of North Dakota is one of 11 "clean air" states, which means it meets all of the federal government's clean air standards. The state receives more than $90 million in tax revenues every year from the lignite industry, and the mines and plants represent some of the best paying jobs in the state with salaries averaging about $80,000.

$80,000 salaries, average, in North Dakota! Wow. I had no idea. I wonder how much a windmill job pays?