Company: "Stacked Play" Oil Formations Found In ND

JAMES MacPHERSON

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — One of the oldest and biggest players in North Dakota's oil patch says it has proof that a separate oil-bearing cache lies beneath at least part of the rich Bakken shale formation in the western part of the state.

Testing done in the area found a "stacked play," meaning one oil formation is on top of another, which could allow more oil to be recovered at a lower cost in a smaller area with less environmental damage, said Continental Resources Inc. chief executive Harold Hamm.

"Naturally, we're very pumped up and very excited," Hamm said.

The Enid, Okla.-based company believes that the Three Forks-Sanish formation is a separate oil-producing reservoir, but geologists believe the formation could simply be catching oil leaking from the Bakken.

State geologist Ed Murphy called Continental's findings interesting but said more wells are needed before researchers know for sure the characteristics and potential of the Three Forks formation.

"It could be separate in some areas and joined in others. It's going to take more tests before we make a determination," Murphy said.