Weld sheriff investigates theft of $267,000 in oilfield drill bits

MILLIKEN – Authorities are investigating the theft of $267,000 in oil and natural-gas drill bits from an Ensign Energy Services Inc. (OTC: ESVIF) drilling site near Milliken.

The drill bits weigh an average 300 pounds apiece and would have required at least two men to pick up and move into a vehicle such as a truck or pickup, said Cpl. Sean Standridge of the Weld County Sheriff’s Office.

An Ensign representative could not immediately comment on the thefts.

The site is an active drilling site, which workers typically occupy 24 hours a day. Drill bits are used to bore through bedrock to reach oil and gas reservoirs thousands of feet underground.

They are often made of steel, tungsten carbide and sometimes natural or synthetic industrial diamonds, according to the news site Rigzone.com. Multiple drill bits can be used on one oil well because different ones work better on various formations, and some have to be swapped because of wear and tear.

“This was an active drilling site and these things walked away,” Standridge said. “That’s why we’re asking for help.”

Anyone with information on the stolen drill bits is asked to call the Weld County Sherriff’s Office at 970-356-4015 or Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or 1-800-444-3776.

Tips can also be submitted through the Crime Stoppers website. People who offer tips that lead to the arrest and charges filed may be eligible for a cash reward of as much as $2,000.

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