DORGAN SAYS U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY'S BAKKEN SHALE STUDY SHOWS DRAMATIC INCREASE IN RECOVERABLE OIL
USGS says Bakken Shale has largest 'continuous' oil accumulation ever assessed
Thursday, April 10, 2008
CONTACT: Justin Kitsch
or Brenden Timpe
PHONE: 202-224-2551
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) --- U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) said Thursday’s release of an eagerly awaited U.S. Geological Survey report, which found that the Bakken Shale formation in western North Dakota holds an estimated 3.65 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil, should give a significant boost to North Dakota’s already-booming oil industry.
According to the USGS, the Bakken Shale is the largest “continuous” oil accumulation the agency has ever assessed. It is larger than any other USGS oil assessment in the contiguous United States.
At Dorgan’s request, the U.S. Geological Survey undertook the study to gain a reliable estimate of the amount of oil that could be produced in the Bakken Shale using the technology available today. Dorgan said the authoritative estimate of the region’s geology should help spark even more investment in North Dakota’s oil industry.
In 1995, the USGS assessment of technically recoverable oil resources in the Bakken was 151 million barrels of oil. Dorgan said the large, 25-fold increase in that estimate is a testament to the power of investment in research and development, improvements in technology, and better understanding of geology.
“The oil industry in North Dakota has already seen substantial growth, but this report is important because it gives oil companies another set of eyes. The substantial amount of oil that it estimates is in the Bakken Shale should attract significant new investment to this region,” Dorgan said. “This is an exciting time for North Dakota’s oil industry. We’re going to see new growth that will boost our economy and help our country shed its dependence on foreign oil.”
A previous USGS study in 1999 by Dr. Leigh Price was never released because the author died before it could be peer-reviewed. Dorgan asked the U.S. Geological Survey to complete a new study that would give the oil industry and the public a good estimate of the technically recoverable oil resources that exist in the Bakken Shale.
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