Despite media reports of landowner opposition to the construction of its pipeline, a representative of Summit Carbon Solutions told the board of the Coal Conversion Counties Association this week that the company's CO2 storage project is "gaining momentum." 

Jeff Skaare, director of land, legal and regulatory affairs for Summit, described the project to the coal county board at a meeting Tuesday in Hazen. He said it represents a $4.5 billion investment that would collect and transport carbon dioxide from 32 ethanol plants in five states to Mercer County, where it would be injected and permanently stored in underground sandstone formations.

Skaare said the capture network of pipelines spans more than 2,000 miles, about 300-to-350 miles of which would be in North Dakota. He said Summit has secured about 30 percent of the right-of-way for the pipeline network, and has obtained permission to survey land covering about 75 percent of the proposed system. Despite a few well-publicized areas of landowner opposition, Skaare said the project is gaining support as Summit expands its outreach to educate the public about the benefits of the company's plans.

Click here to listen to Skaare's comments.

Skaare was asked about the safety of CO2 pipelines since carbon dioxide is an asphyxiant that, in high concentrations, can harm people and livestock. In response, Skaare pointed out the pipeline that currently transports CO2 from the Great Plains Synfuels Plant to Canada has operated safely for more than two decades. He said the pipeline's construction will be closely monitored, and Summit intends to exceed required industry standards for safety.

Click here to listen to Skaare's comments.

Skaare said there are three main reasons North Dakota was chosen as the site for the CO2 injection project: 1) ND has primacy [state authority, not EPA] over Class VI injection wells, 2) the Williston Basin has sandstone formations that are sealed by caprock, and 3) the state has clear legislation that pore space belongs to the surface owner. 

Coal Country will realize considerable economic benefits from the project. Skaare said it will create nearly 2,000 construction jobs, and will create 150 permanent jobs overall. He said Summit will also pay an estimated $485,000 annually in property taxes in Mercer County, $1.1 million in Oliver County, and $200,000 in Morton County. The company is projecting a total North Dakota investment of $898 million.

Click here to see the Summit Carbon Solutions website.

A North Dakota utility regulator and the head of the ND Petroleum Council shared with a US Senate Subcommittee this week their ideas for lowering energy costs and maintaining the reliability of the electric grid. 

Public Service Commission Chair Julie Fedorchak and NDPC President Ron Ness testified before the Energy Subcommittee in a hearing to identify "pathways to lower energy prices." ND Senator John Hoeven, ranking member of the subcommittee, said high energy costs are driving America's 9.1 percent inflation rate, hitting the pocketbook of every American. He said current policies are also creating a risk of disruptions in electric supply.

Click here to listen to Hoeven's comments.

Commissioner Fedorchak said electricity and natural gas costs have increased significantly the past couple years, and told subcommittee members threats to electric reliability are getting worse.

Click here to listen to Fedorchak's comments.

Fedorchak urged those who are pushing "clean energy" to be patient, and recognize that renewables like wind and solar are not capable of replacing baseload coal plants and other thermal generation sources.

Click here to listen to Fedorchak's comments.

Ness said federal regulations pushed by the Biden administration have made it more difficult and expensive to produce oil and gas. He said producers need $20 million a day to grow production in North Dakota, but policy makers are preventing that from happening with statements that discourage banks from financing drilling operations.

Click here to listen to Ness' comments.

Ness said the US industry produces oil and gas more cleanly than anywhere else, and encouraged subcommittee members to support further innovation and streamline regulations to make the industry even cleaner and more efficient. 

Click here to watch the archived webcast of the hearing.

Every Republican member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, including ND Congressman Kelly Armstrong, wrote to EPA Administrator Michael Regan this week asking for information on how the agency’s regulatory actions are affecting America’s immediate and long-term grid reliability.

They letter questioned the Biden administration’s “EGU Strategy” in its climate agenda and how it will affect America’s electric sector.

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation and others predict blackouts are likely this summer and warn of increasing risks in the future due to loss of baseload generation assets. The threats come as the Biden administration continues its rush-to-green agenda to shut down American fossil energy and leave the nation dependent upon sources that strain the electrical grid.

In the letter, committee members state “We believe the Environmental Protection Agency should account for its plans and actions to help us assess factors behind both the immediate and the long-term risks to electric reliability across the nation."

"In recent months, you announced a suite of EPA actions to target fossil-fueled electric generating units, an ‘EGU Strategy,’ to drive the Biden Administration's climate agenda," the letter continued. "This ‘EGU strategy’ includes many major new regulations now under development or proposed (the Interstate Transport Rule, Regional Haze, Risk and Technology Review for the Mercury Air Toxics Rule, a new set of greenhouse gas performance standards, effluent limitations, and a legacy coal combustion residue rule), all of which directly affect power plants that are essential for reliable electric operations."

The letter also highlighted that the EPA is considering revoking permits for coal plants that produce a total of 50 gigawatts of power generation annually. Such a move would likely lead to a major crisis, the Republicans said. The members concluded with eleven questions related to the EPA's plans to ensure grid reliability.

This week's letter follows others sent to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy calling on the agencies to “assure reliability in the bulk power system and the affordable, reliable delivery of electricity.”

Senator Kevin Cramer says the recent US Supreme Court decision in West Virginia vs. EPA is a clear message to federal agencies that the rules and regulations they issue can not go beyond the authority granted to them by Congress.

Cramer, in an interview with Larry Kudlow on Fox Business News, said he hopes it means the beginning of the end of the pattern of federal agency overreach. He said the West Virginia case, which made it clear the EPA does not have authority to impose greenhouse gas regulations on a broad sector of the economy, is precedent-setting and should rein in other agencies that have promulgated over-reaching regulations.

Click here to listen to Cramer's comments.

Kudlow said the message may take awhile to sink in, pointing out the EPA issued an overreaching ozone regulation after the Supreme Court decision. In response, Cramer noted that the Federal Highway Administration did the same thing, issuing proposed climate regulations for highway construction. 

Click here to listen to Cramer's comments.

Cramer said the the long-term effect of the court decision should restore states' rights to self-govern, which also demonstrates that Congress should reduce the size and scope of federal government agencies. He said federal agencies should recognize that they don't have "extra-statutory, extra-constitutional authority."

Click here to watch the Fox Business interview with Cramer. Click here to read a Wall Street Journal editorial on the US DOT's climate proposal. 

The White House has granted a presidential major disaster declaration for North Dakota related to severe spring blizzards and subsequent flooding that broke precipitation records, knocked out power to more than 10,000 residents and caused more than $57 million in damage across the state.

In a June 23 letter directed to Joe Biden and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Gov. Doug Burgum requested that a major disaster be declared for 40 North Dakota counties. The state received notice this week that the request was granted covering all 40 counties, and additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and if warranted as a result of further damage assessments.

Western North Dakota counties on the list include Billings, Bottineau, Burke, Divide, Dunn, Golden Valley, Grant, Hettinger, McHenry, McKenzie, McLean, Mountrail, Oliver, Renville, Ward and Williams. The counties are also eligible for assistance under the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which helps communities pay for projects that increase resiliency and reduce costs in the long term.

“We appreciate President Biden and FEMA granting our request and recognizing the incredible hardship that this combination of severe storms and flooding caused for our farmers and ranchers, communities, local governments and first responders,” Burgum said. “This presidential disaster declaration will unlock FEMA public assistance to help our local governments, agencies and communities recover from extensive infrastructure damage and make resources available to help build resiliency against the long-term risk of future flooding."

From April 22 to May 25, North Dakota experienced a series of wintry, mixed precipitation events around the state resulting in significant freezing rain, heavy snow, sleet and downpours. Strong winds and ice buildup from freezing rain led to the collapse of 7,000 utility poles and at least 550 miles of damage to electric infrastructure, leaving households in western North Dakota without power for up to three and a half weeks.

Infrastructure damage is currently estimated at more than $57 million, with that number expected to climb once all damaged sites are tallied.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has renewed its designation of United Airlines for an Essential Air Service (EAS) contract to continue providing 12 nonstop round trips per week to Denver from the Theodore Roosevelt Regional Airport in Dickinson through September 2024.

Senator John Hoeven, as a member of the US Senate Transportation Committee, has been working to fund the airport’s $63 million runway reconstruction and extension project. Hoeven said he was pleased by the USDOT announcement.

“This contract with United Airlines provides certainty to businesses, families and individuals in Dickinson and the surrounding communities,” Hoeven said. “Boardings are quickly returning to pre-pandemic levels, and it’s essential that the Theodore Roosevelt Regional Airport can continue to meet the growing demand for air service in the region."

Hoeven said efforts continue to secure funding for the new runway, and said he supports the airport authority as it considers plans to develop a new terminal.

Jeff Moore, Dickinson Municipal Airport Authority Chair, said United Airlines has provided exceptional and reliable service to Dickinson.

"Commercial air service in Dickinson benefits southwest North Dakota and allows for continued economic development in the area," Moore said. "The millions of dollars invested in airport improvements, specifically our new runway and parallel taxiway, will benefit the community for generations to come.” 

Between 2009 and 2019, boardings at the Dickinson airport increased by nearly 170 percent, from approximately 9,000 passengers per year to nearly 24,000. In response, the city began reconstructing Runway 14-32, which is being expanded to 7,300 feet long and 150 feet wide. The project was started in 2018 and is on schedule to be completed in the fall of 2022. 

Click here for more information about the runway reconstruction project.

The Southwest Power Pool, the regional electric grid that delivers power to much of western North Dakota reached a new all-time peak load of 51,090 megawatts on July 5, topping the previous record demand for electricity of 51,036 MW set on July 28 last year.

Officials of Basin Electric, which is a participating member of SPP, noted the important role fuel diversity played in ensuring electric reliability to meet the new peak demand record. Days in advance, SPP anticipated high electricity use across its region during a period of extreme heat, and on July 1 declared a Conservative Operations Advisory effective July 6. The advisory signaled to SPP members a need to operate the regional grid with extra care by postponing maintenance on critical facilities and increasing reserve requirements.

“Electricity continues to play a more and more important role in the daily lives of the people that live in our region,” said SPP senior vice president of operations Bruce Rew. “At the same time, preventing service interruptions has become a more and more complex challenge."

Rew said weeks with extreme heat affecting large areas underscores the value of regional collaboration.

"We’re proud of the job we do coordinating among our member utilities to keep the lights on through careful reliability coordination, thoughtful and thorough system planning, and administration of a stakeholder process that ensures mutually beneficial decisions are made regarding things like resource adequacy, cost allocation, and market design,” he said.

SPP is responsible for electric supply across a 14-state service territory that stretches from the Canadian border in North Dakota to the panhandle of Texas. It monitors and forecasts minute-by-minute electricity use and dispatches energy from more than 900 utility-owned generating units to meet demand. SPP also oversees operation of more than 70,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines.

Gov. Doug Burgum is again calling on the federal government to restore pre-pandemic hours of operation at several ports of entry on the US-Canada border where hours were reduced in April 2020.

The governor repeated the request in a letter sent to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Chris Magnus.  Burgum noted that while the number of persons entering the United States through North Dakota ports of entry has increased by 40% since April 1 when the federal government rescinded the need for fully vaccinated travelers into the U.S. to be tested, the current number is still 50% below pre-pandemic levels.

“Many of these North Dakota individuals and businesses rely heavily on their Canadian counterparts for multiple reasons in their daily lives, and limited hours at the majority of North Dakota’s border crossings have made these critical interactions much more difficult,” Burgum wrote in the letter. “While the small expansion of hours after COVID-19 at North Dakota’s ports of entry has been a welcome development, it is imperative that hours of operation return to their pre-pandemic status immediately before further damage is done to the economies and well-being of our border communities.”

Burgum previously sent a letter to Magnus and Mayorkas in late April, in which Burgum noted that of the 10 U.S. ports of entry into North Dakota where hours were reduced, nine of the reductions ranged from four hours to six hours. The letter came after CBP informed the state Tourism Division it had no plans to change the hours at any ports of entry in North Dakota, Montana, Minnesota, Idaho or Washington.

The North Dakota Petroleum Council is seeking nominations for its 2022 NDPC Membership Awards, to be presented at the NDPC Annual Meeting scheduled for September 20-22 in Watford City.

Individuals may apply on their own behalf or nominate another company or program. Awards will be presented in the following categories:

The Excellence in Safety Award recognizes a company or individual that has gone above and beyond to create a culture of safety in the workplace through policies, new technologies, products, advanced training, or other initiatives. NDPC member companies that have shown measurable results in safety through a new initiative or long-term, sustainable program are eligible to apply.

The Community Engagement Award celebrates the spirit of community in the Bakken. This award will recognize an NDPC member company or individual who embodies this spirit by working to build better relationships through company culture, programs, events, or other initiatives that bring industry and stakeholders together. To be eligible, this company or individual must display a commitment to investing in the community through education about the industry, community service, or coordinated events or activities aimed at community outreach.

The Environmental Stewardship Award recognizes an NDPC member company that demonstrates a commitment to cleaner, more efficient operations or that helped improve habitat, grasslands, waterways, parks or through other conservation efforts. Companies that can provide measurable results of long-term, sustainable culture or specific initiatives or programs that show a commitment to environmental stewardship are eligible to apply.

Nominees must be NDPC members or employees of member companies. Nominations are due by August 19.

Click here to download the nomination form.

The North Dakota Petroleum Foundation and dozens of oil industry participants will host Bakken Rocks CookFest July 19 in Trenton and July 21 in White Shield.

The Cookfests offer residents the opportunity to learn more about the oil and gas industry, hear from industry experts, meet the employees of companies working in their area, and best of all, eat some of the best BBQ in western North Dakota. There are also games and activities for kids, swag and giveaways, and live music, making the free event fun for the whole family.

The program begins with a Bakken Basics information session at 2:00 p.m., with the BBQ and live music to follow at 4:00 p.m.

July 19 – Trenton 
2-4 p.m. CDT      Bakken Basics Information Session – TISA Building, 331 4th Ave E
4-7 p.m. CDT      BBQ & Live Music – Trenton Lake Recreation Area

July 21 – White Shield
2-4 p.m. CDT      Bakken Basics Information Session – Ralph Wells, Jr. Community Center
4-7 p.m. CDT      BBQ & Live Music – Ralph Wells, Jr. Memorial Complex

The Bakken Rocks CookFests were started in 2009 when Bakken activity was just ramping up, and has rotated to two different communities each year ever since. The event has since grown to become one of the Foundation’s most popular among both community residents and industry employees and representatives. 

The Shots of the Week this week are devoted primarily to the agriculture producers of western North Dakota. All of the weather stations in the Wise Roads network are located in rural areas adjacent to gravel roads, so their high definition cameras capture vivid pictures of farming and ranching operations, from herds of cattle to bright yellow fields of canola.

The Wise Roads project (Weather Information System to Effectively Reduce Oilfield Delays and Disruptions) was developed by WDEA to increase the efficiency of the movement of oilfield truck traffic. Most weather stations were placed in the core area of Bakken production, focusing on Dunn, McKenzie, Mountrail and Williams Counties. The project provides more accurate weather information to county road managers, especially about rain events, to minimize the need to impose weight restrictions when gravel roads get wet. It was developed in partnership with the ND Agricultural Weather Network (NDAWN), which maintains the stations for WDEA. The project was also assisted with a $250,000 grant from the Oil & Gas Research Council.

Thus far, 45 new stations have been installed, 36 of which are located in the four core counties. Prior to the start of the project, Dunn and McKenzie Counties had just one station each, Mountrail County had three and Williams County had four. Click here to see a map of the station locations. Weather station data and high resolution photos can be found at wiseroadsnd.com. Additional information is also available from NDAWN. 

Featured shots this week are clockwise from upper left, Fayette 2SW in Dunn County showing windrows of hay ready to be baled, Colgan 10S in Divide County with a blooming canola field in the foreground and a one-room schoolhouse on the horizon, White Earth 2SE where this morning's sunrise was shrouded by dense fog, and Grenora 8N in Divide County showing the station rain gauge in which an Eastern Kingbird is raising her brood of chicks.