US oil and gas drilling rig activity this week remained unchanged at 2,008 total rigs working. The rig count for the week ended Jan. 27 was up by 276, however, from the comparable period a year ago, Baker Hughes Inc. reported.
Land drilling operations were up 2 units this week to 1,949 rigs working. There were 42 rigs drilling offshore, 3 less than a week ago. All of these were drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Rigs drilling in inland waters totaled 17, up 1 unit from last week.
Of the US rigs working, rigs drilling for oil made a 2-unit rise from a week ago to reach 1,225 drilling. Rigs drilling for gas for the week ended Jan. 27 lost 3 rigs to reach 777. There were 6 rotary rigs unclassified, up 1 unit from the previous week.
At 217 rigs, directional drilling activity was up by 11 units. Horizontal drilling increased by 2 rigs to a total of 1,185 working.
Texas had the biggest loss this week, down 6 units to 917 rigs working. North Dakota and Louisiana were down 4 rigs each to respective counts of 182 and 142. Wyoming reached 48, down 3 rigs from a week ago. Pennsylvania and Colorado, with counts of 114 and 71, respectively, lost 2 units each. California was down 1 unit to 45, while West Virginia was unchanged from last week at 27 rigs working. Four states made gains this week, namely Arkansas, up 1 to 34; New Mexico, up 3 to 82; Alaska, up 4 to 11; and Olkahoma, up 6 to 203.
Canada’s rig count shot up another 28 units from a week ago, reaching 682. This is up 45 units from the same period a year ago.
