North Dakota’s oil production fell by half on Tuesday due to extreme cold weather and operational challenges, the state’s pipeline authority said.

Oil production was estimated to have fallen by between 600,000 and 650,000 barrels per day, according to the North Dakota Pipeline Authority.

The state’s overall production stood at about 1.27 million barrels per day in October, based on the latest available data from the Energy information Administration.

North Dakota is the third largest oil producer in the U.S., according to government data.

Natural gas output was expected to be down by between 1.6 billion cubic feet per day (bcfpd) and 1.8 bcfpd due to the freezing weather, about half of the state’s 3.44 bcfpd gas production.

A slew of operational issues and leaks, including an oil spill and water line leak, were also reported in North Dakota due to the freezing weather. Oil and gas inspectors were monitoring investigations and remediation efforts related to those events, according to North Department of Mineral Resources.

Temperatures in top oil-producing counties of NorthDakota’s Bakken shale regions were as low as zero degree Fahrenheit on Tuesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service, with a hazardous weather outlook warnings in place for portions of eastern North Dakota through Monday.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar in Houston; Editing by Mark Porter, Nick Macfie and David Gregorio)