Patten: State Is An Energy Superpower

Watford City Senator Dale Patten believes North Dakota citizens should consider their state an "energy superpower."

Speaking at this week's Western Energy Roundtable in Watford City, Patten said the state is effectively a military superpower with two Air Force bases, a fleet of B-52 bombers, and underground ballistic missiles. He said it's also an agriculture superpower, leading the nation in the production of spring wheat, canola, sunflowers and other commodities. But Patten said North Dakota should also be thought of as an energy superpower because it has so many forms of energy production.

Patten jokingly said North Dakota also has an abundance of free energy storage. He said the state has been storing coal for 250 million years, and storing oil and gas for 500 million years.

The state is currently facing headwinds from the Biden administration, which has launched an all-out regulatory assault on the coal industry, and continues to pile more regulations on the oil and gas industry as well. But Patten said he's optimistic about the state's energy future because reality dictates that fossil fuels will be used for decades to come.

Patten also touted the work of the state's Clean Sustainable Energy Authority, which he co-chairs. CSEA was created by the 2021 Legislature to work toward the commercialization of transformative developments in the energy sector and other emission reduction technologies.