“There’s no need to drill it when margins are basically gone,” Hamm said in the phone interview.

The decision marks a major shift for a company that helped turn the Bakken into one of the most productive oil fields in the country. Continental was among the early pioneers that proved hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling could unlock oil trapped in dense shale rock, helping push the United States into its position as the world’s leading oil producer.

Now, the economics that once fueled the boom are working in reverse.

According to research from BloombergNEF, Bakken wells generally need oil prices of around $58 per barrel to break even and generate modest returns. At the same time, drilling costs have risen nearly 4% over the past year.

Oil prices, meanwhile, have slid sharply. West Texas Intermediate, the main U.S. crude benchmark, recently closed just above $59 per barrel, down roughly 26% from a year earlier. Analysts have pointed to growing global supply and softer demand expectations as major factors behind the drop.

That pressure is being felt far beyond North Dakota.

Across the country, the active drilling rig count is down about 15% compared to last year. The steepest declines have hit the Permian Basin, where dozens of rigs have been taken offline as companies tighten budgets and reassess new drilling plans.

Hamm said the slowdown is part of a broader industry recalibration.

“A lot of people are assessing their activity in all the basins,” he told Bloomberg.

While Continental is stepping back from active drilling in the Bakken for now, Hamm made clear the move isn’t necessarily permanent. Like many producers, the company is watching prices closely and could return if conditions improve.

“We’re price takers, as you’re aware, not price makers,” Hamm said. “See what we can get.”

For North Dakota, the pause carries both symbolic and economic weight. Continental’s early success helped spark a regional transformation that brought billions of dollars in investment, thousands of jobs, and rapid population growth to western parts of the state.

Now, as margins shrink and drilling slows, communities built around the oil boom are once again facing the cyclical nature of the energy industry.

The Bakken isn’t running out of oil. But for the moment, much of it is staying in the ground, waiting for prices to make drilling worthwhile again.