ND oil production drops further

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota’s oil production in August dropped below 1 million barrels per day.

The Department of Mineral Resources says the state produced an average of 981,039 barrels of oil daily in August, down from 1.029 million barrels of oil daily in July. North Dakota’s production record was set in December 2014 at 1.22 million barrels daily.

North Dakota also produced 1.64 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day in August, down from 1.69 billion cubic feet daily in July.

The August tally is the latest figure available because oil production numbers typically lag at least two months.

There were 33 drill rigs operating in North Dakota’s oil patch on Thursday, down 85 percent from the high of 218 in May 2012.