North Dakota Oil Booming, Producing 1,000,000 Barrels Per Day

North Dakota oil is booming, and a recent industry report claims that the state reached the milestone of one million barrels. The only other states to reach 1,000,000 barrels per day are California, Texas and Alaska, according to a report in The New York Times. What’s more impressive than that, is that there are only 19 countries on the globe that produce more oil than North Dakota’s million barrels per day.

North Dakota oil production surged from 977,000 barrels per day in March to pass the notable milestone in April.

U.S. Senator John Hoeven (R-N.D.) had this to say about his state’s booming oil production:

“Reaching the 1 million barrel a day mark is a tremendous and timely milestone for the petroleum industry and our state, but it is also a tremendous milestone for our nation.”

Much of North Dakota’s oil production comes from the Bakken shale formation, with a large amount also coming from the nearby Three Forks shale formation, according to a report in the Washington Post. The Bakken and Three Forks shale formations are found in the western part of the state and extend into eastern Montana and the southern region of Saskatchewan, Canada.

North Dakota has been successfully drilling for oil since the early 1950s, but until the last decade, the state’s production has been a mere 80,000 to 90,000 barrels per day, according to a report in the Register-Guard.

The oil boom has had a tremendous impact on the state, playing a large role in the state’s minuscule unemployment and the growth of several cities in Western North Dakota. The oil boom has also led to increased production at gas producing facilities in North Dakota. Higher income jobs are plentiful for those who are willing to do the demanding work required in oil production in the sometimes forbiddingly harsh weather conditions in western North Dakota.

The increased production is especially timely given the riotous conditions fomenting in many of the world’s leading oil and natural gas producing nations, both in the Middle East and in Eastern Europe. The North Dakota oil production has surged to represent 12 percent of the total oil produced in the United States and one percent of the total oil production for the world. Putting it in perspective, North Dakota has roughly the same oil production as the nation of Ecuador.

With world conditions being what they are and the alternative energy sources showing only moderate success, it’s entirely likely that North Dakota will continue to produce more oil, allowing the state to take its place amongst the world’s leading oil producers.

[Image via Shutterstock]