Colorado drilling rig count remains at 15-year low

The oil and gas rig count for the Denver-Julesburg Basin remained 19 for the second week in a row, its lowest point since the price of crude oil began its plunge.

That’s according to the weekly rig-count report released by Baker-Hughes Inc. on Friday that tracks the number of rigs actively drilling or developing oil or natural gas in the United States and Canada.

The latest figure is the lowest for the DJ Basin — which includes much of Northern Colorado and parts of southeastern Wyoming and western Nebraska — since Baker-Hughes began tracking the counts for specific drilling basins in 2011.

The state of Colorado’s rig count was at 20 for the second week in a row. Colorado’s count hasn’t been lower since Oct. 20, 2000, according to Baker-Hughes’ figures.

Oil closed above $32 per barrel Friday after dipping below $27 earlier in the week.

The U.S. rig count dropped 13 to 637, which was 996 fewer than a year ago. Compared to last year at this time, the DJ Basin is down from 53, and Colorado is down from 64.

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