Where next for the Bakken?
Producers are making the North Dakota tight oil play an attractive place to drill again, but it will struggle to compete with the Permian
The Bakken, a vast shale formation under the plains of North Dakota where the US tight oil business took off less than a decade ago, has fallen into the shadows of the more productive Permian and Eagle Ford basins. Oil production in the Bakken has stagnated at around 1m barrels a day since mid-2016. Some analysts say output will never get back to its late-2015 peak, when it topped 1.2m b/d. Amid the stalled production and hotter growth prospects elsewhere, investors have fled Bakken-focused drillers. However, there are signs that the Bakken's top producers are starting to make the economics of drilling the play more enticing. Rystad, a consultancy, pegs the wellhead breakeven for top operato
Also in this section
19 March 2026
The regional crisis highlights the undervalued role of fixed pipelines in the age of tanker flexibility
18 March 2026
Rising LNG exports and AI-driven power demand have raised concerns that US gas prices could climb sharply, but analysts say abundant shale supply and continued productivity gains should keep Henry Hub within a range that preserves the competitiveness of US LNG
18 March 2026
Risks of shortages in oil products may cause world leaders to panic and make mistakes instead of letting the market do what it does best
17 March 2026
The crisis in the Middle East has put LNG’s ability to offer security and flexibility under uncomfortable scrutiny
