Adam Smith's invisible hand at work....
Maybe someone in CA with a big tract of land could hire some of these guys....
....at least the Indian Tribes in North Dakota are building an oil refinery on their land.
A "historical" ground breaking took place on the Fort Berthold Reservation on Wednesday. The event came at the conclusion of the Three Affiliated Tribes annual oil and gas expo in New Town.
Thunder Butte Petroleum Inc., the name of the new refinery, was originally estimated to cost $350 million. The cost went up as the project moved forward and overcame many obstacles.
Tex Hall, the chairman of the Three Affiliated Tribes, said planning for the project began in 2001. "The idea back then was to refine Canadian Tar Sands but that has been changed to Bakken oil." he said.
Hall explained "Thunder Butte" was named for one of the most sacred sites on the reservation. He said the site was chosen because of its size and proximity to a highway.
The project is being broken into four phases of construction, according to Richard Mayer, the chief executive officer of Thunder Butte Petroleum Services. He stated the refinery will provide cost savings to tribal members through fuel, propane and other fuels that will be processed at the facility.
Chairman Hall later said $40 million has been set aside for the development of the first stage of the project. The refinery could process up to 20,000 barrels of Bakken crude per day.