By the OGJ Online Staff
HOUSTON, Mar. 2�US drilling activity rebounded with 1,151 rotary rigs working this week, Baker Hughes Inc. reported Friday.
That�s 30 more than last week when the US rig count declined by 25, and up strongly from 790 a year ago. The number of active land rigs increased by 28 this week, officials said.
Texas led the rebound with 460 rotary rigs working, 12 more than the previous week. Louisiana and Oklahoma added six rigs each, with rig counts totaling 223 and 131, respectively. Rig counts were unchanged at 71 in New Mexico and 51 in Wyoming. But California added three rigs, with a total 31 making hole in that state.
There were 540 rotary rigs working in Canada this week, 13 fewer than the previous week but up from 485 during the same period last year.
ODS-Petrodata Group, formerly Offshore Data Services Inc., reported a net increase of four mobile offshore rigs under contract in the Gulf of Mexico this week. That pushed the utilization rate to 88.2% in those waters, with 186 mobile marine rigs contracted out of 211 available.
In European waters, both the number of contracted rigs and the total number available increased by one to 94 and 102, respectively, this week. That inched up European utilization to 92.2%, the highest level since December 1998 when offshore utilization was 93.5%, officials said.
Worldwide utilization of offshore rigs rose to 87.2% this week as a result of increased demand in the gulf and the North Sea, they said. ODS-Petrodata reported a global net gain of four mobile marine rigs under contract this week, with 566 total rigs contracted out of an universal fleet of 649.
The company also reported 248 offshore platform rigs are under contract worldwide, out of a total 310 available, for 80% utilization.
