June 19, 2003

 

North Dakota Ranks Ninth in Oil

North Dakota ranks ninth nationally in crude oil production, producing nearly 31 million barrels of oil in 2002, according to the recent Economic Brief released from the North Dakota State Data Center at North Dakota State University.

Texas, Alaska, and California, the leaders in U.S. crude oil production, captured nearly half of total oil production in the nation (49.1 percent).

North Dakota’s oil production increased sharply in the mid to late 1970s and peaked in 1984 at 52.7 million barrels. Production declined throughout the late 80s and early 90s. After a small rise in the mid 90s, production has slowed again, dropping from 35.8 million barrels in 1997 to 30.8 in 2002. "Oil production in North Dakota is very dependent on world markets, therefore, the unpredictability of markets make it difficult for those in western North Dakota to rely on oil as a consistent source of revenue," said Richard Rathge, director of the North Dakota State Data Center.

Nearly two-thirds of North Dakota’s oil production came from four counties in 2002: McKenzie, Stark, Billings, and Bowman, each producing approximately 4.9 million barrels of oil.

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Sources: Richard Rathge, (701) 231-8621, richard.rathge@ndsu.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu

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