Bismarck, N.D. – The failure of the repeal of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) final rules regarding methane emissions on federal and tribal lands is an affront to North Dakota and state primacy, says North Dakota Petroleum Council President Ron Ness.

“The industry supports the goals of capturing greater quantities of associated gas and reducing waste but this duplicative and unnecessary rule comes at an enormous cost to the state’s economy, tax revenues and private mineral owners.

“We are extremely disappointed in Senator Heitkamp’s decision today to vote against the repeal of this rule. Hundreds of energy employees and numerous businesses, chambers of commerce and trade associations wrote to express concern for the rule. Despite this, Senator Heitkamp has chosen to stand with the environmental activists and the Democratic party in Washington rather than the oil and gas workers and people of North Dakota.

“This rule will provide no environmental benefits, will only increase costs for state and federal governments and the industry, and will further burden already overtaxed federal employees and dilute their ability to perform essential duties. Instead, Senator Heitkamp could have been the deciding vote that would have allowed the BLM and other federal agencies to make a larger, more immediate impact on reducing flaring and venting by focusing on fixing permitting, infrastructure and pipeline delays.

“Just yesterday, Senator Heitkamp applauded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to grant the state primacy and regulatory authority over CO2 injection wells and the certainty it would bring for North Dakota energy. Her decision today is a complete reversal of that stance. North Dakota already has some of the most comprehensive regulations addressing flaring and waste in the nation. Over the past two years, North Dakota has adopted a series of strict gas capture targets. At the same time, the industry has voluntarily made huge strides in natural gas capture by investing more than $13 billion in natural gas infrastructure since 2006. As a result, flaring has declined by more than 54 percent in just three years even as natural gas production has increased. This progress will only be threatened by the continued uncertainty and bureaucratic red tape brought on by the BLM rule, discouraging innovation and complicating the process for approving infrastructure that will ultimately ensure the capture of more of our valuable natural gas resources.

“We are grateful for Senator Hoeven and Congressman Cramer’s hard work and support for North Dakota Energy and energy workers. We look forward to working with them to pursue other avenues of rescinding this detrimental rule.”

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About the North Dakota Petroleum Council
Since 1952, the Petroleum Council has been the primary voice of the oil and gas industry in North Dakota. The Petroleum Council represents more than 500 companies involved in all aspects of the oil and gas industry, including oil and gas production, refining, pipeline, mineral leasing, consulting, legal work, and oil field service activities in North Dakota, South Dakota, and the Rocky Mountain Region. For more information, go to www.ndoil.org.

Media Contact:
TESSA SANDSTROM
Director of Communications, NDPC
T. 701.223.6380
EnergyOfNorthDakota.com | NDOil.org

From Alex Epstein – CENTER for INDUSTRIAL PROGRESS
On Earth Day, I’m asking my friends and fans to join me in celebrating fossil fuels—coal, oil, and natural gas—by watching and sharing “Why You Should Love Fossil Fuels”, a video I helped create with Dennis Prager and his team at Prager University. The five minute “course” has already drawn over 130,000 views since it was posted yesterday. (In comparison, my most-viewed video before this has 22,000.) Please share far and wide, for it’s time we stop thinking about how to save the planet from human beings, and instead resume thinking about how to improve the planet for human beings. — Alex

Rangeland Energy LLC said that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell the company to Inergy Midstream LP for $425 million. Rangeland is the owner and operator of the COLT system, the largest open-access crude oil distribution hub in North Dakota.

This could represent Inergy Midstream’s first move into the lucrative crude logistics business segment. Inergy is primarily involved in natural gas liquids and natural gas storage and transportation, according to the company’s website.

The COLT system includes a large crude oil rail loading terminal in Williams County, N.D., and related storage and pipeline assets. The transaction is expected to close in early December.

Founded in 2009, Rangeland is a midstream energy company led by a management team and backed by private equity commitments from EnCap Flatrock Midstream of  San Antonio. Rangeland’s management team will retain the company name and continue to pursue midstream development opportunities across North America.

The COLT system is located in the heart of the Bakken and Three Forks shale oil producing region. The system’s components include the COLT Hub, the COLT Connector and the Dry Fork Terminal.  The COLT Hub serves as a point of liquidity for the distribution of Bakken crude oil throughout North American markets by providing customers with crude oil storage and connectivity to BNSF Railway Company and various inbound and outbound pipeline systems.

The terminal was placed in service in early May 2012. The COLT Hub serves crude oil refiners, marketers and producers and has contracted aggregate volume commitments of approximately 150,000 b/d of crude.

The COLT Connector is a 21-mile bidirectional pipeline that connects the COLT Hub to the Enbridge and Tesoro pipelines at Rangeland’s terminal at Dry Fork near the Beaver Lodge/Ramberg junction, the Banner gathering system and a planned connection to the Bear Tracker Energy gathering system.

Construction of the COLT Hub began in May 2011. With six 120,000-bbl storage tanks and two 8,700-foot rail loops, the COLT Hub accommodates large 120-car unit trains.

Under terms of the agreement, all of the Rangeland employees working in North Dakota will be invited to work for Inergy.

–Edgar Ang, eang@opisnet.com  |  www.opisnet.com