Oil production in North Dakota was estimated to have dropped by more than half its typical output because of extreme cold and related operations challenges, the state’s pipeline authority said on Wednesday.
The state’s oil output fell by 650,000 to 700,000 barrels per day (bpd), according to the North Dakota Pipeline Authority. In October, the state’s overall production stood at about 1.27 million bpd, based on the latest available data from the Energy information Administration.
Natural gas output was expected to be down by 1.7 billion cubic feet per day (bcfpd) to 1.9 bcfpd due to the freezing weather, about half of the state’s 3.44 bcfpd gas production.
Production recovery efforts are underway, while temperatures are warming, said Justin Kringstad, the director of the state’s Pipeline Authority.
The majority of the lost output will be back online over the next 4-7 days, Kringstad estimated, with a smaller percentage possibly taking longer.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly)