Williston
Basin

The Williston Basin is the largest oil-producing basin in the northern United States and one of the most productive shale plays in North America. It spans roughly 110,000 square miles across North Dakota, eastern Montana, and southern Saskatchewan and Manitoba in Canada. US-side development is concentrated in a much smaller core area centered on four counties in northwestern North Dakota: McKenzie, Williams, Mountrail, and Dunn. The Montana side of the basin extends into Richland County and surrounding areas.

The basin’s principal horizontal target is the Bakken Formation, a Late Devonian-Early Mississippian package of shales and siltstones that transformed North Dakota into a top US oil producer. Below the Bakken, the Three Forks Formation has three distinct benches (TF1, TF2, TF3) that operators target separately. Combined Bakken and Three Forks development on the same drilling pads is standard practice across the basin, with operators returning to drill different Three Forks benches over a multi-year cycle.

The Williston’s operator base has consolidated heavily over the past several years. Continental Resources holds the largest single position and remains an active developer. Chord Energy was formed through the 2022 merger of Whiting Petroleum and Oasis Petroleum. Chevron absorbed Hess Corporation in 2025, gaining Hess’s substantial Bakken position. Devon Energy absorbed Grayson Mill in 2024. ConocoPhillips absorbed Marathon Oil in 2024. ExxonMobil’s XTO Energy subsidiary also holds significant Williston acreage.

The North Dakota Industrial Commission’s well database is unusually well-maintained and provides searchable access to permit data, completion reports, and production records by API number. For mineral owners trying to verify the current operator on a specific well or check production history, the NDIC’s tools are among the best of any state regulator in the country.

In North Dakota, Williston Basin development is overwhelmingly concentrated in the four core counties of McKenzie, Williams, Mountrail, and Dunn. McKenzie County in particular sits at the basin’s geological core and produces the largest share of state oil output. Surrounding counties (Burke, Divide, Bottineau, Stark, Billings) host extended-area development that is more selective and price-sensitive than the core.

In Montana, the Williston Basin extends across Richland County, Roosevelt County, and surrounding areas. Montana-side development is lighter than the North Dakota core, with horizontal Bakken and Three Forks activity concentrated in specific structural positions.

Mineral rights in the Williston Basin’s core counties are typically valued substantially on Bakken and Three Forks development potential. Owners with tracts in McKenzie, Williams, Mountrail, and Dunn often receive royalty income from multiple wells per drilling spacing unit, with stacked Bakken plus Three Forks development continuing across multiple years.

The basin’s heavy operator consolidation means royalty paperwork frequently shows multiple legacy operator names over time. Whiting Petroleum, Oasis Petroleum, Hess Corporation, Marathon Oil, and Grayson Mill Energy all appear on legacy paperwork from acquisitions over the past several years. The underlying mineral interest carries over unchanged through each transaction; what changes is the company administering the payment. The current operator on any specific well can be confirmed through the North Dakota NDIC well search by API number or by section, township, and range.

For inheritors with Williston Basin interests, the combination of stacked Bakken and Three Forks pay typically makes the position a meaningful long-term royalty stream. Lease terms in the basin vary substantially by vintage. Older legacy leases and modern leases can carry meaningfully different royalty terms and post-production cost language. The vintage of any lease covering a property is often a significant factor in net royalty income, separate from the productivity of the underlying wells.

If you are considering selling mineral rights in the Williston Basin, the basin’s mature horizontal development means valuations are well-established. We pull recent operator activity in your specific spacing unit, identify nearby permits and active drilling, look at lease language, and produce a written analysis of what your interest is worth. We do significant work in the Williston Basin and are happy to do this for any North Dakota or Montana tract regardless of size.