Whiting to suspend North Dakota oil well completions

BISMARCK, N.D. – North Dakota’s largest oil producer says it will suspend its well-completion operations in April.

Whiting Petroleum Corp. says it will operate only two rigs in the state but it will not finish them by hydraulic fracturing once they are drilled. The Denver-based company also says it will cut all spending by 80 percent in North Dakota in reaction to sustained low crude prices.

North Dakota Petroleum Council President Ron Ness told the Bismarck Tribune that Whiting’s announcement this week is not any different from what other oil producers have been doing already.

For the year, Whiting expects to pump 128,000 to 138,000 barrels per day. That compares to about 155,000 barrels the company produced in the fourth quarter of 2015.