The ratio of natural gas to crude oil being produced from Bakken wells will continue to increase, possibly doubling the state's current natural gas output in fewer than 10 years.

That was the message of Justin Kringstad, director of the ND Pipeline Authority, to members of the ND Legislature's interim Energy Development and Transmission Committee this week. Kringstad said the ratio of natural gas to oil typically starts out close to one-to-one, meaning 1,000 cubic feet of natural gas for each barrel of crude oil. But he said the ratio has been steadily climbing as more new Bakken wells are completed.

Click here to listen to Kringstad's comments.

Kringstad said the higher gas-to-oil ratios are not unexpected. He told legislators most new wells today are being drilled in areas where a "parent well" already exists, which means the pressure that holds natural gas in the reservoir has already been reduced.

Click here to listen to Kringstad's comments.

Kringstad's slide presentation to the committee offered several different production scenarios, the high case of which could have the state's natural gas production approaching seven billion cubic feet per day. The state's output as of the month of May was just under 3 Bcf per day.

Click here to view the article in the WDEA Weekly Newsletter