Rising oil production in North Dakota is spurring the development of two new refineries in the Bakken. The welcome additions will be North Dakota’s second and third refineries.

Tesoro Mandan, the only existing refinery in North Dakota, is located near Bismarck.

Ground was broken recently near Dickinson for the Dakota Prairie Refinery, a joint venture of MDU Resources Group and Calumet Specialty Products. It will primarily make diesel fuel for local use, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Another refinery, the Trenton Diesel Refinery, is expected to be built near Trenton, but no construction schedule has been announced by the parent company, Dakota Oil Processing.

The price tag for building refineries can run into the hundreds of millions of dollars. It’s encouraging to see this kind of long-range development confidence in the Bakken.