2024-01-25 18:02:41
State Mineral Resources Director Lynn Helms
BISMARCK, N.D. (North Dakota Monitor) – North Dakota Director of Mineral Resources Lynn Helms, the state’s expert on oil during the Bakken boom, announced Wednesday that he is retiring.
Helms made his announcement at a meeting of the North Dakota Industrial Commission.
“Words cannot begin to describe the immense value that Lynn Helms has brought to North Dakota,” Industrial Commission members said in a joint statement. “Under his leadership, our state has emerged as an energy powerhouse, in addition to being a global leader in carbon management.”
The Industrial Commission is made up of Gov. Doug Burgum, Attorney General Drew Wrigley and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring.
During the meeting, Helms called his departure “bittersweet.”
Helms was appointed to lead the Oil and Gas Division in 1998. In 2005, the Oil and Gas Division merged with the North Dakota Geological Survey and was reorganized as the Department of Mineral Resources, where Helms has continued to serve as director.
In the coming years, oil production would take off in northwest North Dakota, which is now the state’s third largest producer of crude oil.
During Helms’ tenure, North Dakota’s average daily oil production increased from 99,217 barrels per day in 1998 to an all-time high of 1,519,037 in 2019 before stabilizing at roughly 1.2 million barrels per day by the end of 2023, according to the Industrial Commission.
The state is projected to produce its 5 billionth barrel of oil this year.
Helms’ retirement is effective June 30.
The Industrial Commission approved a search committee to find a replacement for Helms.
The search committee will consist of representatives from the Office of the Industrial Commission, representatives from each of the three commissioners’ offices, two members of the Oil and Gas Research Council, the director of the North Dakota Pipeline Authority and a staff adviser from the Department of Mineral Resources.
Commissioners thanked Helms for his “highly capable and balanced approach” to regulatory oversight.
Critics have, at times, accused Helms of being a cheerleader for the oil industry.
Burgum said he was hoping for Helms’ help in the search for a successor.
“I will help out in every way that I can,” Helms said. “It’s a fun job.”
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