US weekly drilling rig count slides 18 units

The US rig count declined by 18 units during the week ending July 20. The US total reached 1,935 for the week, Baker Hughes Inc. reported. This compares with 1,916 during the same week last year.

Land drilling operations bore the brunt of this loss, reaching 1,866, down 17 units from a week ago. There were 18 rigs drilling in inland waters, 1 rig fewer than last week.

Of the total, 51 rigs were drilling offshore, unchanged from a week ago. Of these rigs, 48 were drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

Of the recent week’s total, oil rigs were down by 13 units from the previous week at 1,414. Gas rigs, meanwhile, also slumped, down 4 units to 518. Three active rotaries were unclassified, down 1 rig from a week ago.

Rigs drilling directionally were reported at 230, down 2 units from a week ago and 14 fewer than the same week last year. The number of rigs drilling horizontally also decreased by 2 units during the week to 1,164, compared with 1,102 in the comparable week a year ago.

Among the major drilling states with decreases this week were Texas, down 10 rigs to 900; New Mexico, down 5 to 86; West Virginia, down 3 to 24; and North Dakota, Colorado, and Ohio, down 1 rig each to counts of 198, 65, and 18, respectively. Five states were unchanged from a week ago: Oklahoma, 202; Pennsylvania, 78; California, 54; Arkansas, 17; and Alaska, 6. Wyoming, at 47, was up 2 rigs from a week ago. Up 3 rigs, Louisiana reached 118 units this week.

Canada’s rig count was 328, including 243 rigs drilling for oil and 85 drilling for gas. The total was up 32 units from the previous week and down 48 units from last year’s comparable week.