03.07.18

Hoeven: USGS Nominee Reaffirms Commitment to Work with State, Industry on Comprehensive Study of Williston Basin

WASHINGTON – At a hearing of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee this week, Senator John Hoeven received a commitment from Dr. James Reilly, the nominee to be Director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), to continue a new comprehensive, broad-based resource estimate for the Williston Basin. Hoeven received a commitment from USGS in December to undertake the analysis as a result of a meeting he hosted in Bismarck with the USGS last fall. 

“We appreciate the commitment from Mr. Reilly, the nominee to lead USGS, to continue working with our state and industry on a broad-based estimate of recoverable oil in the Williston Basin,” said Hoeven. “With new technologies and developments in oil recovery methods, our energy industry made a strong case for a new study when we hosted USGS in Bismarck last year. We appreciate USGS’s continued commitment to work with our state and industry to provide a comprehensive study of the region.”

Hoeven hosted the USGS Acting Director William Werkheiser in Bismarck last August to hear firsthand from energy leaders about the latest data, geological surveys and technical achievements in the oil field. The senator spearheaded a similar effort that resulted in the most recent USGS study from 2013, which more than doubled the estimates of technically recoverable oil at that time, from 3.65 billion barrels to 7.4 billion barrels.

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