Marathon Oil's Bakken production is outpacing expectations. The company produced 37,000 net boe/d from the play in the first quarter and surpassed 38,000 net boe/d in April.

The company now expects 2013 production to average 40,000 net boe/d. That's almost 15% higher than previous guidance.

A total of 18 gross Bakken wells were drilled in the first quarter and 22 were brought to production.

Clarence P. Cazalot, Jr., CEO, said "Our strong operational performance was a result of high levels of reliability in our base business along with continued growth in our Eagle Ford and Bakken shale plays."

The average spud to spud drilling time continues to fall. Marathon was able to drill and move rigs in an average of 25 days in the first quarter.

Price realizations are also improving as the company moved 45% of its oil by rail in the quarter. Marathon realized an average price of almost $89/bbl in the Bakken in the first quarter compared to less than $80/bbl in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Read the full press release at marathonoil.com