Short answer
North Dakota had 505 oil and gas establishments in 2023, employing 15,350 people at average pay of $125,076 (Census County Business Patterns); 384 were support contractors. On 30 October 2026, the state's active rig list showed 39 rigs for 23 operators, led by Phoenix Operating and Devon Energy Williston with four each. The state produced 1.16 million barrels of oil a day in August 2026 from 20,177 wells, and no SEC-registered listed oil company is headquartered there.
- 505 establishments, 7th among states, with 15,350 employees and a $1.92 billion payroll in 2023.
- Williams County alone has 162 establishments and 5,799 employees, around Williston.
- 39 rigs were on the Industrial Commission's active rig list on 30 October 2026, 12 of them in McKenzie County.
- North Dakota produced 1,171,000 barrels of crude oil a day in 2025, third after Texas and New Mexico (EIA).
- No listed oil and gas company has its SEC business address in the state; the buyers are regional offices and field yards.
On this page
This report is for job seekers heading to the Bakken, companies looking for a North Dakota contractor or partner, mineral owners checking an operator, and B2B sellers whose customers are producers and oilfield service companies in the Williston Basin.
Who is drilling in North Dakota now
The Oil and Gas Division of the North Dakota Industrial Commission (NDIC) updates its active drilling rig list daily. On 30 October 2026 it showed 39 rigs working for 23 operators, with start dates from 27 September to 28 October:
| Operator (as listed) | Rigs |
|---|---|
| Phoenix Operating LLC | 4 |
| Devon Energy Williston, L.L.C. | 4 |
| Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company LP | 3 |
| Hess Bakken Investments II, LLC | 3 |
| Continental Resources, Inc. | 2 |
| Enerplus Resources USA Corporation | 2 |
| Koda Resources Operating, LLC | 2 |
| Kraken Operating, LLC | 2 |
| Oasis Petroleum North America LLC | 2 |
| XTO Energy Inc | 2 |
| 13 other operators | 1 each |
The single-rig operators include EOG Resources, Hunt Oil, Petro-Hunt, Slawson Exploration, Whiting Oil and Gas, Zavanna Energy Operating and Formentera Operations. Many listed names are operating subsidiaries of larger companies, so check the parent in its annual report before treating two names as two customers.
By county, McKenzie had 12 rigs, Williams 10, Dunn 6, Divide 5, Burke 3 and Billings, Bowman and Mountrail 1 each. The NDIC's 2026 monthly statistics put the average rig count at 24 in August and 28 in September, and count 694 drilling permits issued from January to September.
Production
| Measure | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Oil produced, August 2026 | 36,004,228 barrels (1,161,427 a day) | NDIC monthly statistics |
| Producing wells, August 2026 | 20,177 | NDIC monthly statistics |
| Wells spudded, January to August 2026 | 462 | NDIC monthly statistics |
| Crude oil output, 2025 | 1,171,000 barrels a day, 3rd among states | EIA |
| Marketed natural gas, 2025 | 1,197,922 million cubic feet, 9th among states | EIA |
Output has been close to flat: the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) has North Dakota at 1,199,000 barrels a day in 2020, 1,198,000 in 2024 and 1,171,000 in 2025. Producing wells keep rising, from 19,268 in January 2026 to 20,177 in August, so the work is shifting toward keeping more wells running.
North Dakota in Census data
US Census Bureau County Business Patterns (CBP) 2023, State of North Dakota, NAICS 211 (Oil and Gas Extraction), 213111 (Drilling Oil and Gas Wells), 213112 (Support Activities for Oil and Gas Operations) and 324110 (Petroleum Refineries):
| Measure (2023) | North Dakota |
|---|---|
| Establishments | 505 |
| Employees (week of March 12) | 15,350 |
| Annual payroll | $1,919,912,000 |
| Average employees per establishment | 30.4 |
| Average annual pay | $125,076 |
| Share of US establishments | 3.02% of 16,710 |
| Rank among states | 7th |
| Segment (NAICS) | Establishments | Employees | Average annual pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Support activities (213112) | 384 | 10,155 | $117,120 |
| Crude petroleum extraction (211120) | 58 | 1,895 | $181,531 |
| Drilling (213111) | 50 | 2,577 | $108,829 |
| Natural gas extraction (211130) | 13 | Not reported | Not reported |
| Employees per establishment | Establishments |
|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | 204 |
| 5 to 9 | 82 |
| 10 to 19 | 64 |
| 20 to 49 | 73 |
| 50 to 99 | 44 |
| 100 to 249 | 27 |
| 250 or more | 11 |
The Census Bureau doesn't publish the classes from 250 employees up; the 11 is the total less the published classes. In broader bands, 350 establishments have 1 to 19 employees, 117 have 20 to 99 and 38 have 100 or more. That is a heavier mix of mid-size firms than Texas: 23% of North Dakota's establishments have 20 to 99 employees, against 17% of Texas's.
| County | Establishments | Employees |
|---|---|---|
| Williams County | 162 | 5,799 |
| McKenzie County | 79 | Not reported |
| Stark County | 68 | 1,893 |
| Ward County | 44 | Not reported |
| Dunn County | 32 | 1,022 |
| Mountrail County | 28 | Not reported |
| Burleigh County | 16 | Not reported |
| Bottineau County | 10 | 138 |
"Not reported" marks a total the Census Bureau flags as high-noise: the noise it adds to protect confidentiality changed the figure by 5% or more. Another 16 establishments are recorded statewide, with no county. The counts are establishments with paid employees, not companies, and leave out the self-employed. No petroleum refinery establishment appears, though EIA lists one refinery in the state, at Mandan, with 72,000 barrels a day of capacity on 1 January 2026.
No head offices, so who buys?
In the SEC's company records, no listed company in the oil and gas industry codes (SIC 1300 to 1389, 2910 to 2911 and 4920 to 4923) has a business address in North Dakota. The operators on the rig list are run from elsewhere, so a North Dakota account usually means two buyers: a field office in the western counties that runs the work, and a head office that controls vendor approval. Find the field superintendent first, then learn the company's supplier registration process. Phoenix Operating, with four rigs on the list, is an example: its parent, Phoenix Energy One, gives Irvine, California, as its principal executive office in its 2025 10-K and lists offices in Dickinson and Williston.
Finding and checking companies
| Source | What it gives you |
|---|---|
| NDIC active drilling rig list | Every rig by operator, well, county, API number and start date, updated daily |
| NDIC oil and gas statistics | Monthly production, permits, spuds and rig counts, and production by county and formation |
| North Dakota Petroleum Council | The state industry association since 1952, representing more than 550 companies, with a buyers guide |
| EIA state production data | Annual output by state, for comparisons |
To vet an operator, find its wells and permits through the NDIC, check whether it has rigs on the current list, and for a public parent read the latest 10-K on SEC EDGAR. For a service contractor, ask for its safety record, insurance and the operators it currently works for.
Selling to North Dakota oil and gas companies
| Account type | How many | Who usually decides |
|---|---|---|
| Operators with rigs running | 23 on the 30 October list | Drilling superintendents locally; supply chain at head office |
| Support contractors | 384 establishments, 10,155 employees | Owner, district manager, HSE manager |
| Drilling contractors | 50 establishments | Rig and district managers |
Illustrative example. The seller and its prices are invented; the rig counts are NDIC data.
Badlands Power (badlands.example) rents generators and light towers to drilling and completion crews. It starts from the rig list: 23 operators, two contacts at each (the drilling superintendent in North Dakota and the category manager at head office), 46 people. At a 10% reply rate that's about 5 conversations; if two lead to a trial on one rig at $9,000 a month, that's $18,000 a month while the rigs stay. Because the list shows start dates, the seller can call each superintendent in the week a new rig arrives. Bebop can research the operators behind each rig and find the people who run them; see how to find decision makers for the method.
Hi [first name], I saw [operator] has a rig on [well name] in [county] since [date]. We keep generators and light towers on location for Bakken crews and swap failed units within [hours]. Open to a quick note on how you handle backup power?
Next step: compare the Bakken with the other big oil states in the list of the largest oil and gas companies.
Sources
- County Business Patterns (CBP), 2023, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- Current active drilling rig list, North Dakota Industrial Commission, Oil and Gas Division, accessed 30 October 2026
- 2026 monthly statistical update, North Dakota Industrial Commission, Oil and Gas Division, accessed 30 October 2026
- Crude oil production by state, annual, US Energy Information Administration, released 30 September 2026
- Natural gas marketed production by state, annual, US Energy Information Administration, accessed 30 October 2026
- Refinery Capacity Report, Table 3: capacity by state as of 1 January 2026, US Energy Information Administration, 2026
- Phoenix Energy One Form 10-K, fiscal 2025, SEC EDGAR, 17 March 2026
- About the North Dakota Petroleum Council, North Dakota Petroleum Council, accessed 30 October 2026
Written by the Bebop team at Blackpearl Group. Published .
Questions people ask
How many oil companies are in North Dakota?
Census County Business Patterns counted 505 oil and gas establishments in North Dakota in 2023, employing 15,350 people: 384 support contractors, 71 producers and 50 drilling contractors. That counts locations with paid employees, not companies. On 30 October 2026, 23 operators had rigs on the Industrial Commission's active rig list, and the North Dakota Petroleum Council represents more than 550 companies.
What are the biggest oil companies in North Dakota?
By rigs running on 30 October 2026, the most active operators were Phoenix Operating and Devon Energy Williston (four rigs each), Burlington Resources Oil & Gas and Hess Bakken Investments II (three each), and Continental Resources, Enerplus Resources USA, Koda Resources, Kraken Operating, Oasis Petroleum North America and XTO Energy (two each), on the North Dakota Industrial Commission's list.
Are any oil companies headquartered in North Dakota?
No SEC-registered listed oil and gas company has its business address in North Dakota, according to SEC company records. The Bakken's operators are headquartered in other states and run their North Dakota work from field offices, mostly in the western counties where the rigs are. The state's own oil and gas trade group, the North Dakota Petroleum Council, is based in Bismarck.
How much oil does North Dakota produce?
The North Dakota Industrial Commission reported 36,004,228 barrels in August 2026, or 1,161,427 barrels a day, from 20,177 producing wells. For full years, the US Energy Information Administration puts North Dakota at 1,171,000 barrels a day in 2025, third among states after Texas and New Mexico, and slightly below its 2024 level of 1,198,000.
Where are the oil jobs in North Dakota?
Mostly in the western counties. Census data shows Williams County with 162 oil and gas establishments and 5,799 employees in 2023, followed by McKenzie (79 establishments), Stark (68, with 1,893 employees) and Ward (44). Support contractors employ about two thirds of the state's 15,350 oil and gas workers, at average pay of $117,120.