Hess Corporation HES announced that it has sold Bakken crude for export out of the U.S. Gulf Coast to Europe. It is reportedly the first shipment of North Dakota oil since the Congress lifted the ban on crude export in Dec 2015.Per Reuters, Hess sold 175,000 barrels of Bakken crude. The consignment was loaded in early April at St. James, LA and is currently being shipped to a European refinery. No other detail with respect to the buyer or the name of the cargo ship was disclosed.The declaration comes close on the heels of ExxonMobil Corporation’s (XOM) announcement that it is transporting about 18,000 barrels of oil from its deepwater Julia field in the Gulf of Mexico to its refinery in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.In spite of being small in size, both the consignments represent the first of their kind in the rapidly developing U.S. crude export market. All other shipments from the U.S. consisted of light onshore oil.The Bakken shale of North Dakota lies more than 1,500 miles (2,414 kilometer) offshore Louisiana. ExxonMobil, on the other hand, had derived crude from initial well tests conducted on the Julia project, which is expected to startup in the second quarter of 2016.Hess has transformed to a predominantly E&P entity, thereby shifting its growth approach from high-impact exploration to low-risk unconventionals, and a smaller, more focused exploration portfolio. The company divested its downstream businesses including energy marketing, terminals, retail marketing and refining operations. In view of the global economic slowdown and new refining capacity entering the world market, the aforesaid decisions will help enhance Hess’ shareholder value.Currently, Hess carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked players from the energy sector are ReneSola Ltd. SOL, FutureFuel Corp. FF and NextEra Energy Partners, LP NEP. Each of these stocks sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report HESS CORP (HES): Free Stock Analysis Report NEXTERA ENERGY (NEP): Free Stock Analysis Report FUTUREFUEL CORP (FF): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research