The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced this week that North Dakota ranks sixth among the top primary energy-producing states based on data collected in 2019.

The EIA defines primary energy as "the form that is first accounted for in a statistical energy balance, before any transformation to secondary or tertiary forms of energy." North Dakota has long been a top producer of energy commodities including coal, crude oil and natural gas. Read the State Energy Data System report here.

The EIA notes that the top primary energy-producing states - Texas, Pennsylvania, Wyoming, Oklahoma, West Virginia and North Dakota - accounted for 55% of all primary energy produced in the U.S. in 2019. The number is up from 20 years earlier when the same six states accounted for 39% of primary energy in 2000.

Overall primary energy production grew 40% between 2009 and 2019. Much of the increase in production can be attributed to the innovative strides made in hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling during that time period. Those strides led to the Bakken Boom and skyrocketed North Dakota to the second-highest crude oil-producing state - accounting for 12% of U.S. oil production - up from just 3% in 2009. The advancements in crude oil and natural gas, coupled with North Dakota's booming lignite industry, more than quadrupled North Dakota's primary energy production over the last 10 years.

From the growing hospitality industries in cities like Williston and Watford City to vital infrastructure development to the Legacy Fund, the growth of the petroleum industry in North Dakota has positively impacted North Dakota communities. A study of oil tax revenue distribution released by the Western Dakota Energy Association and the ND Petroleum Council in March 2021 shows the widespread impact of the industry across the state. Read the WDEA/NDPC study here.

Between 2008 and 2020, the oil and gas industry contributed more than $22 billion in extraction and production tax revenues in North Dakota, accounting for 45-to-50% of all taxes collected. The tax revenue has been used across the state, adding $1.3 billion for water projects, over $8.2 billion for community and infrastructure projects, and $6 billion to the state Legacy Fund. 

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