James MacPherson

Read the latest stories and analysis from James MacPherson.

FILE - This Nov. 6, 2013 file photo shows a warning placard on a tank car carrying crude oil near a loading terminal in Trenton, N.D. North Dakota Public Service Commissioner Julie Fedorchak wants the state to employ its own railroad safety inspectors to help monitor crude shipments coming from the oil patch. Fedorchak says the idea is aimed at preventing accidents like the fiery oil train crash outside Casselton in December that left an ominous cloud over the town and led some residents to evacuate. (AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)

ND regulator wants state to monitor oil trains

James MacPherson · June 27, 2014 10:21 pm

Company gets shipping commitments on ND pipeline

Company gets shipping commitments on ND pipeline

James MacPherson · June 26, 2014 9:05 pm

FILE - This Monday, May 26, 2014 file photo from video provided by Dan Yorgason, shows a tornado in a worker's camp near Watford City, N.D., in the heart of the state's booming oil patch. The tornado injured nine people, including a 15-year-old girl who suffered critical injuries, and damaged or destroyed more than a dozen trailers at the camp. When waves of workers began spilling into western North Dakota for high-paying oil jobs and nowhere to live, they set their eyes on the rural _ and unregulated _ prairie of McKenzie County. The population was booming so fast that no one knew how many people were in the county, so local officials pushed through ordinances that are now being credited in part with helping emergency workers during the severe storm that brought only the 14th tornado to the county in 65 years. (AP Photo/Dan Yorgason, File)

Push for permits help responders in ND oil patch

James MacPherson · June 6, 2014 4:09 pm

FILE - In this Sept. 23, 2008 file photo, natural gas is flared from an oil well near Parshall, N.D. North Dakota oil companies must submit a gas capturing plan with drilling permit applications beginning Monday, June 2, 2014. The state Industrial Commission, which regulates North Dakota's oil and gas industry, unanimously endorsed the proposal in March in an attempt to cut down the amount of natural gas that is burned off and wasted as a byproduct of oil production. (AP Photo/James MacPherson, File)

North Dakota starts natural gas capturing plans

James MacPherson · June 2, 2014 10:49 pm

BNSF: Future of crude by rail depends on safety

BNSF: Future of crude by rail depends on safety

James MacPherson · May 21, 2014 11:09 pm

FILE - In this May 22, 2012, file photo, workers erect an oil pump at the Williston Basin Petroleum Conference and Expo in Bismarck, N.D. The three-day Williston Basin Petroleum Conference and Expo starts Tuesday, May 20, 2014, at the Bismarck Civic Center, which is undergoing a $27 million expansion, in part because of the soaring interest in the oil conference. (AP Photo/James MacPherson)

ND oil expo bringing 4,000 people to Bismarck

James MacPherson · May 17, 2014 2:01 pm

Railroad: Federal order won’t affect oil shipments

Railroad: Federal order won’t affect oil shipments

James MacPherson · May 8, 2014 8:56 pm

FILE - In this July 26, 2011, file photo, a worker hangs from an oil derrick outside of Williston, N.D. State data show that 1 billion barrels of oil have been produced from the rich Bakken shale formation in western North Dakota and eastern Montana. Data show that North Dakota has tallied 852 million barrels of Bakken crude, and Montana has produced about 151 million barrels. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)

Bakken oil fields mark billionth barrel of oil

James MacPherson · April 29, 2014 9:37 pm

ND OKs power line in historic battlefield area

ND OKs power line in historic battlefield area

James MacPherson · April 23, 2014 8:06 pm

Ron Ness, North Dakota Petroleum Council President, testifies in front of officials with the Oil and Gas Division of the North Dakota Mineral Resources Department at a hearing Tuesday, April 22, 2014, in Bismarck, N.D. The North Dakota Industrial Commission was holding the hearing on its new natural gas flaring policy. (AP Photo/The Bismarck Tribune, Mike McCleary)

Oil companies fight ND plan to slow production

James MacPherson · April 22, 2014 9:53 pm

Railroad says it’s committed to hauling fertilizer

Railroad says it’s committed to hauling fertilizer

James MacPherson · April 18, 2014 9:03 pm

BNSF outlines fertilizer shipment plan to feds

BNSF outlines fertilizer shipment plan to feds

James MacPherson · April 17, 2014 8:04 pm