DICKINSON - Oil companies are staying busy in North Dakota, but some firms are having a tough time finding enough workers to keep up with the pace of production.

High oil prices have spurred exploration around the world and North Dakota's oil patch is no exception, said Lynn Helms, director of the North Dakota Industrial Commission's Oil and Gas Division.

The problem for people like Scott Shackleford is finding enough qualified employees.

"We're not going to do like we did during the oil boom and put warm bodies out," said Shackleford, the district manager for Key Energy.

Key Energy has two oil rigs operating at full capacity 24 hours a day. To keep those rigs running, the company has been forced shut down some of other operations, he said.

"A lot of the people have left the industry to other jobs when the oil slowed down and prices were real low, and now we're having a tough time attracting people into the industry," Shackleford said.

Some oil service companies face a similar shortage. Missouri Basin Well Services of Belfield hauls crude oil and water from oil rigs and employs about 75 people, and controller Dave Wanner said truck drivers are in high demand.

Ron Ness of the North Dakota Petroleum Council, said the oil industry in the state is made up of a number of smaller companies, making it difficult to judge how many workers are needed.