Associated Press

North Dakota keeps rising on the nation's oil production charts.

State Department of Mineral Resources director Lynn Helms says North Dakota now ranks fifth among oil-producing states.

Helms says North Dakota recently passed Oklahoma. He says the state's western oil fields are pumping out about 188,000 barrels of oil each day.

Texas ranks first, followed by Alaska, California and Louisiana.

Helms says activity in the western oil patch is staying strong, even though oil prices have declined steeply in recent weeks.