Most of the focus on the Bakken shale production has understandably been on crude, but the play also contains a large quantity of natural gas liquids (NGLs) that requires the development of new facilities to process, fractionate, and transport these volumes out of the region.

According to Wells Fargo Securities, crude oil production out of the Williston Basin, which includes the Bakken shale and Three Forks, could increase from 400,000 barrels (bbl.) per day in 2011 to 1.3 million bbl. per day by 2017. NGL production out of the play ...