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Getting to what's trapped inside the oil-formation class=kxInlineLink>Bakken formation is a big, expensive challenge. But as Donnell Preskey reports finding unique ways to break the oil loose could sustain the oil activity in our state for a very long time... (Donnell Preskey) Rigs drilling in the Bakken are going down about 2 miles once they get to that formation they steer through rock as thick as the state capitol building. Now engineers are challenged with the best way to unlock the oil. (Lynn Helms) you can see from the very fine, grain rock why oil is so difficult to extract. so we got 160 billion barrels of oil - trapped in pore spaces of this rock. 167 Billion barrels of oil waiting to be freed in the Bakken. But right now only 1.4% is recoverable using the current technology that's 2.1 Billion barrels. (Helms) Having an oil resource that's profitable at 1.4% recovery - meaning that 98.6% is still down there to go after. Means there's all kinds of opportunities for people with ideas on how to flood this formation. Those ideas could help an area in Divide County where drilling has been uneconomical... (Helms) There are some large Bakken oil accumulations in Divide County that need some new type of drilling or fracturing to make the play work up there. We know the oil is in place. To see the potential you don't have to look far this is what the Cedar Hills field in Bowman County looked like ten years ago when oil production there was declining. Then they found a way to enhance production... (Helms) You can see they've added three additional wells every section of land. They're injecting water, high pressure air and production from this field is 1/3 of ND's total production. And even though activity in the Bakken is new Helms and others are already looking at ways to extend the oil fields life by decades. There's an area near Tioga where CO2 is being injected into the well... (Helms) It's an experiment on how can increase recovery from Bakken - even a doubling from 1.4% to 3% is another 2 billion barrels can produce in the state. And that's the ticket improving technology will more than likely increase our oil production. But knowing what we know today how long will our oil last? (Helms) our current rig fleet of 70 rigs will take 19 years to drill up the part of the Bakken that we've identified as being a potential productive resource. We've got a lot of good years ahead of us. Plus each well produces oil for about 30 to 35 years. So Helms believes oil production in the Bakken will extend 100 years from now. Here's a way to put North Dakota's oil production into perspective. In one day North Dakota produces less than one percent of what the nation consumes. Improvements in technology is important, so is state policy. Bob Harms who represents oil producers, says the 11.5% tax on oil wells is an issue. He says North Dakota is competing for investors and that tax rate may deter companies from coming to North Dakota. Bakken formation is a big, expensive challenge. But as Donnell Preskey reports finding unique ways to break the oil loose could sustain the oil activity in our state for a very long time... (Donnell Preskey) Rigs drilling in the Bakken are going down about 2 miles once they get to that formation they steer through rock as thick as the state capitol building. Now engineers are challenged with the best way to unlock the oil. (Lynn Helms) you can see from the very fine, grain rock why oil is so difficult to extract. so we got 160 billion barrels of oil - trapped in pore spaces of this rock. 167 Billion barrels of oil waiting to be freed in the Bakken. But right now only 1.4% is recoverable using the current technology that's 2.1 Billion barrels. (Helms) Having an oil resource that's profitable at 1.4% recovery - meaning that 98.6% is still down there to go after. Means there's all kinds of opportunities for people with ideas on how to flood this formation. Those ideas could help an area in Divide County where drilling has been uneconomical... (Helms) There are some large Bakken oil accumulations in Divide County that need some new type of drilling or fracturing to make the play work up there. We know the oil is in place. To see the potential you don't have to look far this is what the Cedar Hills field in Bowman County looked like ten years ago when oil production there was declining. Then they found a way to enhance production... (Helms) You can see they've added three additional wells every section of land. They're injecting water, high pressure air and production from this field is 1/3 of ND's total production. And even though activity in the Bakken is new Helms and others are already looking at ways to extend the oil fields life by decades. There's an area near Tioga where CO2 is being injected into the well... (Helms) It's an experiment on how can increase recovery from Bakken - even a doubling from 1.4% to 3% is another 2 billion barrels can produce in the state. And that's the ticket improving technology will more than likely increase our oil production. But knowing what we know today how long will our oil last? (Helms) our current rig fleet of 70 rigs will take 19 years to drill up the part of the Bakken that we've identified as being a potential productive resource. We've got a lot of good years ahead of us. Plus each well produces oil for about 30 to 35 years. So Helms believes oil production in the Bakken will extend 100 years from now. Here's a way to put North Dakota's oil production into perspective. In one day North Dakota produces less than one percent of what the nation consumes. Improvements in technology is important, so is state policy. Bob Harms who represents oil producers, says the 11.5% tax on oil wells is an issue. He says North Dakota is competing for investors and that tax rate may deter companies from coming to North Dakota.