ND oil rig count breaks record set in 1981
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A record number of rigs are drilling in North Dakota's oil patch.
The state Department of Mineral Resources on Friday said that 154 rigs were drilling in western North Dakota. That breaks the record 148 rigs set in October 1981.
Government and industry officials say modern drill rigs that use advanced horizontal drilling techniques are four to eight times more efficient than rigs that drilled vertical wells in the 1980s. Each active oil rig represents about 40 direct jobs and 80 indirect jobs in North Dakota.
Nearly all the rigs drilling at present are aimed at the rich Bakken shale and Three Forks-Sanish oil reservoirs.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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