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# North Dakota seeks financing for field-scale Bakken oil-recovery tests
- URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/state-news-north-dakota-2026-10-18-a/
- Published: 2026-10-18T19:27:20.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-18T19:27:20.000Z
- Description: North Dakota officials are pursuing financing for a roughly $400 million expansion of Bakken oil-recovery research. Up to 200 test wells are envisioned, but funding and commercial success are not assured as first-phase pilots continue.
- Author: News Desk
- Tags: Business, North Dakota

North Dakota officials and oil-industry leaders are pursuing a larger field-scale test of enhanced oil recovery in the Bakken, with financing still being assembled for an expansion estimated at $400 million. Senator John Hoeven outlined the proposal October 16 alongside Governor Kelly Armstrong and federal energy officials, according to [Hoeven’s office](https://www.hoeven.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hoeven-efforts-begin-on-phase-2-of-crack-the-code-2-0-moving-from-individual-wells-to-field-scale-testing?ref=theamericanquorum.com) and [North Dakota Monitor](https://northdakotamonitor.com/2026/10/16/north-dakota-officials-are-jumpstarting-next-phase-of-effort-to-boost-bakken-oil-production/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). It is a research and financing initiative, not an announced commercial breakthrough.

The proposed second phase of Crack the Code 2.0 would move beyond individual-well experiments to tests across an oil field, involving up to 200 wells. [Hoeven’s account](https://www.hoeven.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hoeven-efforts-begin-on-phase-2-of-crack-the-code-2-0-moving-from-individual-wells-to-field-scale-testing?ref=theamericanquorum.com) says he is working with Energy Under Secretary Kyle Haustveit to make federal loan guarantees available. The [Monitor’s reporting](https://northdakotamonitor.com/2026/10/16/north-dakota-officials-are-jumpstarting-next-phase-of-effort-to-boost-bakken-oil-production/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) likewise describes an effort to obtain that support, rather than an approved $400 million federal award.

## Existing pilots are still underway

The expansion would overlap with a first phase totaling $157 million across six pilot projects. Three are underway, one has received an injection permit and two await North Dakota Industrial Commission approval, according to both the [senator’s update](https://www.hoeven.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hoeven-efforts-begin-on-phase-2-of-crack-the-code-2-0-moving-from-individual-wells-to-field-scale-testing?ref=theamericanquorum.com) and the [Monitor](https://northdakotamonitor.com/2026/10/16/north-dakota-officials-are-jumpstarting-next-phase-of-effort-to-boost-bakken-oil-production/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). Those different stages matter: not every pilot has begun operating, and the new field-scale proposal does not replace the continuing tests.

The research has an established federal component. In its [May 8 announcement](https://www.energy.gov/hgeo/articles/energy-department-invest-36-million-enhanced-oil-recovery-program-university-north?ref=theamericanquorum.com), the U.S. Department of Energy selected the University of North Dakota’s Energy & Environmental Research Center for $36 million to advance Bakken oil-recovery research. DOE describes a program combining laboratory work, computer modeling, artificial intelligence and field observations to evaluate carbon-dioxide injection strategies. Its stated purpose is to develop evidence for wider deployment, not certify that all technical or commercial questions have been resolved.

## Scaling up carries unanswered questions

Enhanced recovery can involve injecting gases into underground formations to restore pressure and extract more oil, as the [Monitor explains](https://northdakotamonitor.com/2026/10/16/north-dakota-officials-are-jumpstarting-next-phase-of-effort-to-boost-bakken-oil-production/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). DOE’s [research description](https://www.energy.gov/hgeo/articles/energy-department-invest-36-million-enhanced-oil-recovery-program-university-north?ref=theamericanquorum.com) specifically emphasizes testing different reservoir conditions and operating approaches. That experimental design is important context for officials’ optimism: performance in one reservoir or pilot is not, by itself, proof of a profitable solution throughout the Bakken.

Earlier [Monitor reporting from the May petroleum conference](https://northdakotamonitor.com/2026/06/01/time-is-the-enemy-oil-industry-faces-uncertainty-in-what-the-bakkens-next-era-will-look-like/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) documented researchers’ and executives’ concerns about choosing effective, affordable methods, obtaining enough carbon dioxide and adapting infrastructure to handle it. EERC chief executive Charlie Gorecki said the industry had not found a single solution. Those technical and economic uncertainties help explain why the [DOE program](https://www.energy.gov/hgeo/articles/energy-department-invest-36-million-enhanced-oil-recovery-program-university-north?ref=theamericanquorum.com) emphasizes comparing results across multiple pilots before drawing broader lessons.

For North Dakota, the next practical questions are who commits financing, which partners participate and what the tests demonstrate. [Hoeven’s office](https://www.hoeven.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hoeven-efforts-begin-on-phase-2-of-crack-the-code-2-0-moving-from-individual-wells-to-field-scale-testing?ref=theamericanquorum.com) says officials are seeking additional industry partners and prioritizing proximity to existing carbon-dioxide supplies and infrastructure. The [Monitor reported](https://northdakotamonitor.com/2026/10/16/north-dakota-officials-are-jumpstarting-next-phase-of-effort-to-boost-bakken-oil-production/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) that Petroleum Council president Ron Ness expects a state-funding request in the next legislative session. That prospective request is not a legislative appropriation, and the larger production gains promoted by supporters remain goals rather than established results.