Hub City bill defeated for now

The House of Representatives by a vote of 37-54 this week, defeated the so-called Hub Cities bill that would address oil industry impacts in Dickinson, Minot and Williston.  Despite the bill’s defeat, legislative leaders said the needs of western North Dakota communities will not be ignored. 

The Hub City legislation would have set aside millions promised by the state to Williston’s new airport, but city officials say the defeat doesn’t mean disaster for the project.  The bill included $40 million for construction of the Williston Basin International Airport. It would be the final portion of the state’s contribution to the $250 million project. 

Click here for Williston Herald story on budget impact on airport 

Dickinson area legislators were not entirely discouraged by the defeat of HB 1366.  They took comfort in House leadership’s pledge to revisit the funding issue later in the session. 

Read the Dickinson Press story on the defeat of the Hub City bill 

Truck Permit Legislation Cruises Through House

Legislation that would help improve the operation of WDEA’s Uniform Truck Permit System passed the ND House this week on a unanimous 90-0 vote. HB 1320 does several important things including:

• Establishing a truly uniform system by ensuring participation of all political subdivisions in a county.
• Instructing the ND DOT and Highway Patrol to choose the most efficient routing, considering the impacts on city, county, township, and state roads.
• Allowing negotiation of a separate road use agreement when a permit is denied.

Next stop for the legislation will be the Senate Transportation Committee.

Pipeline Siting Legislation Would Supersede Local Zoning Authority

The Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee gave unanimous approval this week to SB 2286, a bill the changes the current process under which the Public Service Commission sites oil and natural gas pipelines. 

The legislation essentially sets the PSC up as the local zoning board, taking that power away from the political subdivision.  The amended language compels the PSC to consider the factors that a local zoning board would consider in a hearing for a conditional use permit.  It requires the PSC to notify local zoning bodies when a permit application has been submitted, and allows local political subdivisions 10 days to provide the requested information about road access, right-of-way and other considerations. The bill will be debated on the Senate floor next week.

Meridian announces MOU on proposed Davis Refinery products

Meridian Energy Group, Inc.entered into Memorandum of Understanding with local and regional petroleum product distribution firms, under which these firms will purchase and distribute up to 268 million gallons per year of refined products from the Davis Refinery, near Belfield. This is an important milestone for Meridian, since it represents over 67 percent of the design capacity of Davis Light.

Read the Meridian news release here

Oil drilling on federal land moves forward

The U.S. Forest Service's Dakota Prairie Grasslands McKenzie Ranger District is taking comments on a proposal from Newfield Production Company to drill the wells using an existing well pad and access road.

Click here for Prairie Business Story

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum issued late Wednesday an emergency evacuation order for Dakota Access protesters still located in the floodplain, citing the threat of “injury or death” and “ecological disaster” from the rapidly melting snowpack.

The mandatory evacuation sets a deadline of 2 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 22, the same cut-off established by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for pipeline activists to leave the camp located on federal land at the confluence of the Cannonball and Missouri rivers.

Joey Mahmoud, an Energy Transfer executive vice president, told a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee that a "host of half-truths and misrepresentations" about the project have "inflicted significant financial and reputational damage on our company."

"Far from being an exception, I fear the aggressive tactics we have seen in North Dakota will soon be the norm — if they are not already," he said.

Marathon Oil plans more activity in Bakken

Marathon Oil expects to spend more as it ramps up activity in Oklahoma's Stack/Scoop and the Bakken Shale.  In the Bakken, Marathon Oil plans to focus on its highest return West and East Myrmidon areas and expects to average approximately six drilling rigs in the Bakken in 2017.