Turning Drilling Waste into Roads

June 17, 2015 Elizabeth Alford

Saltwater Waste — ND Tests New Technologies to Recycle Waste

The North Dakota Department of Health has approved a pilot project to test new technologies to recycle solid drilling waste.

One of the companies involved in the project is promising to revolutionize the industry by recycling Bakken drilling waste into material for roads or other uses. Nuverra has invested more than three years and $30 million into this initiative. Its process called Terrafficient can recycle 100 percent of that waste, according to company spokesperson.

Recycling drilling waste is a common practice in other states, but the Bakken’s high salt content has made it more challenging to develop a process that protects the environment.

“Scott Radig with the North Dakota Department of Health said “Nuverra proposes to reuse the drilling waste in three ways: mix it with gravel so the gravel will compact better and not wash off the roads; reuse it as a road base material; and use it within municipal landfills as daily cover material.”

Nuverra’s testing will include using the recycled material to construct a road within their landfill facility near Arnegard and a gravel road in central McKenzie County will be used to test mixing the recycled material with gravel.

North Dakota Fights Fracking Rule

June 15, 2015 Elizabeth Alford

North Dakota officials are warning that a new federal fracking rule will likely cost the state $300 a year in income and 1,900 jobs.

In March,the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finalized new rules to regulate hydraulic oil and gas fracturing on public lands. Several states have filed suit, arguing that the new rules supersede the state’s authority and “invade” the jurisdiction of the state regulatory bodies.

The ruling is particularly significant to North Dakota because of it vast public lands. It is estimated that BLM has an interest in about a third of the drilling units in North Dakota that were acquired the mineral rights on defaulted farms during the the Great Depression.

Lynn Helms, director of the Department of Mineral Resources believes that the ruling will cause companies to leave North Dakota, which could cost the state $9.4 billion in royalties and taxes.

The rule is set to take effect on June 24th and to delay implementation, North Dakota filed a request for a preliminary injunction against the BLM while the court reviewed previous challenges. A hearing is set for June 23 in U.S. District Court in Casper, Wyo.

OPEC Decision Doesn't Intimidate

June 10, 2015 Elizabeth Alford

Crude Plunges to Six Year Low — OPEC to Keep Oil Production High

OPEC announced last Friday that it will stick with its policy to produce oil at a high rate, a measure that may signal they are underestimating Bakken producers.

If the measure by OPEC was meant to intimidate U.S. energy producers, they may want to try again. Despite this tactic to crush competitors, U.S. oil companies have worked to streamline operations an become more efficient. Many now claim they can remain profitable at the lower crude prices for some time.

“Lynn Helms, head of North Dakota’s Department of Mineral Resources says that “OPEC is still is our main competition. But what you’re seeing now is the Bakken becoming the swing producer, something that has happened relatively quickly because of efficiencies in drilling and completion technology.”

In response to OPEC’s announcement, oil prices fell on Monday and analysts project this will prolong the supply glut for the rest of the year. But despite forecasted demands and increasing supplies, OPEC said it expected that the world’s oversupply of crude will likely ease over the coming quarters and that U.S. production will decline in the third quarter.

Heitkamp Urges Repeal of Oil Export Ban

June 8, 2015 Elizabeth Alford

Heidi Heitkamp, U.S. Senator from North Dakota is urging lawmakers to repeal a 1970’s era ban on oil exports.

Taking the Senate floor last month, Heitkamp said that the existing restrictions on U.S. oil producers are harming America’s competitiveness. Heitkamp hopes to level the playing field by doing away with restrictions that hinder America’s economic growth and that threaten our long-term goal of becoming energy independent.

Not everyone is in favor of lifting the ban, however.

“Athan Manual, the director of the Lands Protection Program at the Sierra Club, said his biggest concern is how increased oil consumption around the world will impact climate change. “We don’t think we should be exporting global warming, basically, to other countries,” he said. “We think all the countries in the world should do what the U.S. is doing and dramatically reduce their use of fossil fuels, especially oil, to fight climate change.”

Floods Threaten Bakken Producers

June 4, 2015 Elizabeth Alford

North Dakota experienced its wettest May on record and all the rain is causing trouble for some oil and gas producers.

The region had almost 8 inches of rain last month and now flood waters threaten operators near the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers. More rain is expected and could cause raise flood levels to 22 feet by this weekend. North Dakota regulators have stepped up inspections and are urging producers to take precautions. Inclement weather can easily wreak havoc on the energy infrastructure including well flooding, road closures and truck bans.

“Alison Ritter, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Mineral Resources, said 13 companies were notified to secure their equipment. “The well sites might not flood but the access roads might,” Ritter said. “So we want to make sure they have everything secure now in case they lose access.”

Last year, a well owned by Zavanna LLC was swamped with water causing 1,400 gallons of oil to leak and eventually coated brush, trees and grass in the area.$3 million in fines were levied last year against 19 companies that failed to protect against spring flooding.

Other affected producers include Statoil, Exxon Mobil's XTO Energy and Oasis Petroleum, who have been given the option of voluntarily shutting in wells.