Summary and conclusions of bakken and three forks field study

In 2015, supply of natural gas and oil produced from shale formations has reached about half of the domestic U.S. consumption. The fast growth of production from shale resources brings increasing attention to that resource not only in the U.S., but also in the world markets. Rapidly increasing oil production is considered one of the reasons behind the world oil market crash, when the oil price dropped from over $100/bbl in 2014 to below $30/bbl in 2016. Despite a modest price recovery, questions remains about the future of U.S. unconventional oil production. Whether the growth continues will depend on prices but even more so on technological advances and improvements in production efficiency. The Eagle Ford, Bakken and Permian basin resources drive the recent turnaround in U.S. crude production. An in-depth understanding of the geologic framework, the resource in place and the economics of development are essential to building a credible outlook of the future production from these resources in order to judge their impact on the future energy balance in the U.S. and world. Under funding from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation the BEG has developed resource estimates and supply projections for the major gas shale plays in the U.S. (Barnett, Fayetteville, Haynesville and Marcellus). The studies quantified the multi-decade importance of these plays to U.S. natural gas supply. Under subsequent funding from the Sloan Foundation the studies are now complete for two of the largest shale oil plays in the country (Eagle Ford and Bakken). A study is now being initiated, based on the successful process developed during the Sloan funded studies, to develop a resource and supply outlook for the remaining large unconventional oil province in the country, the Permian Basin. The combinations of these studies will give a thorough understanding of the geologic framework, resource in place, development economics and production outlook for the largest oil and gas unconventional resources in the country. In this final installment under the Sloan funded work we present the results of our in-depth study of the Bakken formation in North Dakota and Montana.