anyone on here work on a drilling rig or work in the oilfeild?

Just ran across this thread. I've been in the oil/gas industry since 2004 (started at 18). I'm currently directional drilling in North Dakota on a rig north of Watford City. It's an up and down industry, feast or famine, but it's for me.

 

Good old Watfird City. I grew up in Grassy Butte and my grandparents just sold their house in Watford to an oil company to use as housing. They moved to Bismarck. Parents are in Minot and have a brother in Stanley. My dad has been in the oilfield for 36 years so I understand when you say feast or famine. I was born in Williston and moved to Wyoming in 1990 and my parents moved back to ND in 2008. Following the work.

 

I lived in Wildrose last summer, what a place! Drove to grassy butte a number of times and spent a lot of time in Williston. Boy oh boy is it good to be home. Well I'm really from WY but hey I love NV too. I also lived in Pocatello when I was real little. Back when the FMC plant was still there.

 

Didn't know there were so many folks running around North Dakota on here... I go to a little engineering school in South Dakota and the oil industry is scooping up tons of our grads. Work the hell out of them for a couple years and they burn out and then they come back for the new guys again. I wouldn't mind doing it, can't complain when the throw a 6 figure offer at you fresh out of school. I tried to get up there this summer for an internship but didn't get any interviews with them from our career fair, so I'm in Iowa now. Maybe I'll see some of you next summer...

 

I've gotten hit up by recruiters for a LNG job in ND and they would pay for travel, lodging, and food. Then another in Pecos, TX operating a power plant making $70 an hr but would have to pay my own way and it's a renewable 1 year contract. Both are 14 on and 14 off. Kind of weighing my options right now, both would give me the opportunity to move back to Central Texas eventually. Just unsure that the boom may eventually turn in to a bust.

 

Anyone have some good knowledge of what companies are good to start with, or have a possible job connection. Currently I work for BNSF railroad in you guessed it, the Bakken oil field. Basically looking for a switch into oil, mostly to keep the pay going and to work a 2wk on 2wk off (or something similar).

I feel like oil might be the right job for me

 

How many have gotten their pink slips lately?

 

My company has plans on laying off 7000 people this first go around. Should get interesting..

 

It's not looking good for the home team, that's for sure. This Saudi/OPEC stunt is getting out of hand quickly. I'd imagine a war will break out over there by the end of the year if they don't quit. oBummer is just letting this happen and what most people don't realize is the loss of taxable income when this does happen. Most just don't care because gas at the pump is cheaper, not realizing every time this happens a quarter million hands are unemployed.


Edit: have you read about oBummer wanting to veto the pipeline linking the tarsand oils to south TX. This would link Canadaian tar oil, south/west TX sweet crude, and Mexican oil. It would make this corner of the planet almost independent. OPEC can't have that.

 

What steps can obummer take to change the situation ?

 

oh I feel ya. although it'd be nice to milk the socialist system for a change. unfortunately most people wont see how this is going to affect americas growth and potentially send us to another recession.

 

*Canadian

and his veto would be of the bill to try to force approval of Keystone XL , it wouldn't necessarily kill the project

 

He didn't mind pouring billions into our failing auto industry. An industry that should have gone under as it is mainly populated by unions that are overpaid for what they do. Ford didn't take the handout. He didn't mind pouring billions into our failing banking industry. Yet another overpaid opulent group that should have been allowed to go under. Many of the small independent banks did not take the handouts. America is based on a free market and certain things are to take their course just as in the wild. The oilfield will always survive, but to allow it to rise and fall as it has for generations is not beneficial short term. I pay about $44k/year in taxes, SS, and everything else. Now mulitply that by just the 7000 from one company and you get $308,000,000 generated from one company. Some make more, some make less. I'm in the middle. Let alone the revenue losses and taxes per company. Oil companies and oil company related service outfits pay the most taxes of any business in the U.S. General Electric grossed more that BP, IIRC it was BP, and paid less tax than some citizens.

If you could go 'off the grid' electrically and still live as you normally do day to day, would you not do it. oBummer gave Petrobras billions of U.S. dollars to come to the U.S. and drill in the U.S. G.o.M. deepwater and they've done well. I took part in drilling one of their last wells and I asked. He basically gave them enough money to drill the first two wells they did for free. That's a helluva present because two of the 4 wells can fill a mid sized tanker in a just few days.

So what can oBummer do to change the situation? How about an embargo on Saudi oil? How about an embargo on just OPEC oil? Simple enough. We embargo all kinds of other things like chocolate eggs with toys inside from Italy. Why not something that will strengthen your country and your neighboring countries. The oil field will naturally downsize itself if this were to happen and reach a happy medium, not hundreds of thousands of people in a few months.

 

Thank you for correcting my grammer. A lumberjack, eh?

 

That's actually spelling, and it's " grammar " and the banking bailouts were initiated by Bush and I'm not sure that an embargo on OPEC oil would be effective

i also am not sure domestic production would meet current demands

 

You passed. Domestic producton will not meet current demands. But eliminating OPEC oil will not eliminate the rest of the world's oil. But it's a start at curbing foreign oils as North America is one of the biggest consumers.

 

Roughly 33% of the oil used domestically in the US is imported

Ironically Canada is the biggest supplier of oil the US imports

http://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.cfm?id=727&t=6

 

Why is it ironic?

 

Thank you canada...

 

I just meant in the context of our converstation , but getting back to what I was saying , an embargo on OPEC oil would not be effective and the remaining production would not meet domestic need .

In short , "obummer" has little influence over OPEC's strategy with respect to production which is the driving factor behind the current low oil prices and subsequent lay offs and project shut downs in the oil sector in the US and Canada