South Dakota Property for Sale
The interest in South Dakota property for sale has increased significantly during the last year. One reason is simply that there is a stronger demand for raw land for investment, and another reason is that oil and gas exploration activities have been expanding greatly in the area. The Williston Basin to the north, estimated by some experts to contain one of the largest petroleum reserves in the United States, continues to expand south into South Dakota. Â
Recently, a small oil field was identified about one mile from Bear Butte, which is located just a few miles east of Sturgis off Highway 34. It is estimated that the field could contain four million barrels of recoverable reserves. At $100 per barrel, it is easy to understand how the eventual production of $400 million dollars’ worth of oil would be a real boost to the local economy.
While most of the attention is centered on the extremely prolific Bakken Formation, a new formation called Spanish-Three Forks has been identified in Harding County, South Dakota. Exploration companies are producing as much as 2,000 barrels a day out of this formation, equating to approximately $6 million worth of oil per month per well! A map of the Spanish-Three Forks Formation shows a massive oil formation, and the little town of Buffalo is located almost directly in the center of it.
Public meetings are currently being held in the northwest part of South Dakota for the purpose of educating residents as to what can be expected from the coming oil boom. Exploration crews and truck drivers bring business, and communities will need parking, restaurants, truck stops, and highway expansion. U. S. Highway 85 already has been expanded to a four-lane highway.
South Dakota property for sale has heated up considerably. Regardless of whether oil or gas is ever found on any particular tract, property values in general will obviously increase.