BUSINESS DIGEST: ND oil patch may double production

ND oil patch may double production

BISMARCK, N.D.

Government and industry officials believe North Dakota’s oil patch contains more than twice the amount of oil previously estimated and that the state’s already record crude production will double within the decade.

If the forecast is correct, North Dakota could leapfrog in a few years from the fourth-biggest oil producing state to No. 2, trailing only Texas.

“It’s a pretty rosy picture,” said Lynn Helms, director of the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources.

Helms said the state is pumping about 350,000 barrels of crude per day and was on pace to produce about 110 million barrels in 2010, up from 79.7 million last year and more than double the amount produced less than three years ago.

Obama aide talks about debt ceiling

WASHINGTON

Some Republican lawmakers said Sunday they opposed raising the ceiling on the nation’s debt without tackling government spending, and President Barack Obama’s top economic adviser warned against “playing chicken” on the issue.

The federal debt is limited to $14.3 trillion, but the debt now stands at nearly $13.9 trillion and is growing daily. Congress last raised the debt ceiling in February 2010 and is expected to consider raising it again as early as March.

To some conservatives, refusing to raise the limit on the federal debt could be an effective tactic to force lawmakers into cutting spending and facing such contentious issues as the rising costs of Social Security, Medicare and other entitlement programs.

Austan Goolsbee, the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said that refusing to raise the debt ceiling would essentially push the country into defaulting on its financial obligations for the first time in its history.

“The impact on the economy would be catastrophic,” Goolsbee told “This Week” on ABC. “That would be a worse financial economic crisis than anything we saw in 2008.”

Associated Press

SELECTED LOCAL STOCKS

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .62, 22.68 —.21

Avalon Holdings,2.77—.03

Clear Channel, 1.75 60.60 2.06

Cortland Bancorp, 5.30—.35

Delphi Automotive, .02 .00

Farmers Nat., .12, 3.55 .00

First Energy, 2.20, 37.25—.05

FirstMerit Corp., .64,20.13 .19

First Niles Financial, .32,8.00.00

First Place Fin., 2.55—.06

FNB Corp., .48,9.96—.07

General Electric, .48,18.19—.08

Motors Liquidation, NANA

Huntington Bank, .04, 6.89—.07

JP Morgan Chase, .20,42.23—.13

Key Corp, .04,8.85.00

LaFarge, 15.73 —.02

Macy’s, .20, 25.24.20

Parker Hannifin, 1.08, 85.98—.17

PNC, .40,60.88—.31

RTI Intl. Metals,26.82—.09

Rural/Metro, 14.70 —.06

Simon Prop. Grp.,2.40,99.66—.60

Stoneridge 16.05 —.01

United Community Fin. 1.30.00

Selected prices at 4 p.m. Thursday. Provided by Stifel Nicolaus. Not to be construed as an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security.