Reversing last week’s decline, the US drilling rig count rose 15 units to 939 rigs working during the week ended Jan. 12, data from Baker Hughes indicate. This total is up 280 units from a year ago.
Offshore this week gained 2 units to 19 rigs working. All 19 units were drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. A total 919 rigs were drilling on land, up 13 units from last week. The number of rigs drilling in inland waters remained unchanged at 1 unit.
Rigs targeting oil ticked up 10 units to reach 752, up from the 522 rigs drilling for oil a year ago this week. Gas-targeted rigs were also up this week to reach 187 units, 5 units more than a week ago. This time a year ago, 136 rigs were drilling for gas.
Texas, with 452 total units running, saw the only drop in rigs among the major oil and gas-producing states, down 2 units from last week.
Oklahoma gained 3 units from last week to 121 rigs working. New Mexico and Louisiana, with a respective 81 and 61 rigs running, gained 5 units each. Colorado gained 2 units from last week to 36 rigs working, and Utah and Alaska each gained 1 unit to reach 12 and 6 rigs running, respectively.
Seven states’ rig counts were unchanged this week, namely North Dakota, 45; Pennsylvania, 36; Ohio, 27; Wyoming, 26; California, 14; West Virginia, 13; and Arkansas, 0.
Canada gained 102 units to 276 rigs from a week ago. There are 39 less rigs running than a year ago this week. Oil-directed rigs rose 87 units this week to 185, while those targeting gas increased 15 units to 91.
