Report: North Dakota is nation's 4th-largest oil producer

A new federal report says North Dakota has surpassed Louisiana as the fourth-largest oil-producing state in the nation.

The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration says North Dakota produced 6.38 million barrels of crude in May. That edged out Louisiana, which had 6.34 million barrels for the month.

The Energy Information Administration says North Dakota's oil production accounts for about 2 percent of total U.S. crude oil production.

North Dakota has leapfrogged over several states in recent years in oil production. In 2006, the state ranked as the ninth-largest oil-producing state.

Texas, Alaska and California are the top oil producing states. North Dakota would have to triple its production to surpass third-ranked California.