Central ND News

Senator John Hoeven hosted U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright at the University of North Dakota’s Energy & Environmental Research Center for a discussion focused on enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in the Bakken region. The event brought together state officials, including Representative Julie Fedorchak and Governor Kelly Armstrong, as well as energy producers and university leaders.

The roundtable centered on policies from the One Big Beautiful Bill (OB3), which aims to encourage collaboration between coal and oil producers. The goal is to double both the oil recovery rate in the Bakken formation and extend the operational life of coal-fired power plants.

Hoeven emphasized efforts to align federal incentives with these objectives, particularly through adjustments to the 45Q tax credit. This credit is designed to promote using carbon dioxide for EOR, which could increase oil output while providing an additional revenue stream for coal producers.

According to Hoeven, “This is a proven method for increasing recovery rates, as CO2 is already used for EOR in conventional oil fields. For instance, the Dakota Gasification Company supplies CO2 to the Weyburn Field in Canada.” He also noted that current Bakken oil recovery rates are between 5 and 15 percent, leaving significant untapped reserves. “Last year, total production from the Bakken formation surpassed 5 billion barrels, and EOR has the potential to recover at least an additional 5 billion barrels of oil out of the Bakken,” he said.

Reflecting on past developments in North Dakota’s energy sector, Hoeven stated: “In North Dakota, we originally cracked the code in the Bakken by advancing a legal, tax and regulatory environment that enabled the deployment of the latest greatest technologies to access previously unavailable oil reserves. This empowered innovative companies to come into the state and develop oil and gas from shale formations on a commercially-viable basis. For example, through his former company, Liberty Energy, Secretary Wright played a key role in making North Dakota an energy powerhouse by bringing new hydraulic fracturing technologies to market,” said Hoeven. “Now we have him in the state once again in his new role as Secretary of Energy as we crack the code on the Bakken for the second time, bringing together our oil and coal industries to not only double our recovery rate in the Bakken, but also double the life of our coal plants. That means more affordable energy and a more reliable grid, which is a recipe for true U.S. energy dominance.”

The OB3 legislation includes other measures aimed at expanding domestic energy production. It requires quarterly lease sales for taxpayer-owned resources such as oil and gas; directs prompt action on new coal lease applications; and opens up an additional four million acres of federal land with known recoverable coal reserves.

Additionally, OB3 seeks to reverse certain policies enacted under recent federal initiatives like rolling back fees imposed by laws such as those found within President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Specifically mentioned are efforts led by Hoeven in blocking implementation of what he referred to as President Biden’s Natural Gas Tax—a fee affecting domestic production—and reducing royalty rates for fossil fuel extraction back to previous levels.