North Dakota Drilling, Fracking Activity Steady as Prices Gyrate, State Regulator Says

(Reuters) – The number of hydraulic fracturing crews and rigs operating in North Dakota was unchanged in June, even as oil prices have faced increased volatility in recent weeks, the state regulator said on Tuesday during a monthly briefing. There are currently 13 frac crews operating in the state and 32 rigs. Overall, U.S. energy firms last week dropped oil and natural gas rigs for the eighth straight week for the first time since September 2023, according to data from energy services firm Baker Hughes on Friday.

North Dakota is the third-largest oil-producing state. Its oil output fell 22,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) to 1,172,000 bpd in April, monthly data from the state Industrial Commission showed.

“Volatility is hard for companies to plan for. Many of the operators in the state now are larger operators and react less to the volatility in prices that we’re seeing right now,” said Nathan Anderson, director of the state’s Department of Mineral Resources. U.S. crude futures jumped to a six-month high on June 18 at around $75 a barrel as the escalating Israel-Iran conflict stoked global supply concerns. Prices have since slid around $10 per barrel on expectations that a ceasefire between Israel and Iran will reduce the risk of oil supply disruptions in the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Bakken oil delivered at Clearbrook, Minnesota, was pricing at a 75 cents per barrel premium to West Texas Intermediate on Tuesday, the state regulator said.

Reporting by Georgina McCartney in Houston Editing by Matthew Lewis