Canada rig count climbs, while US count slides

Canada’s rig count continued to climb this week, while US drilling activity fell. According to Baker Hughes’s rotary rig count, which was released Friday, Canada’s rig count increased by 29 units to reach 226 rigs running the week ended Jan. 16. The rise follows last week’s 96-unit gain. The rig count in Canada this week is still down 3 units from the number of rigs drilling during this period last year. 

There were 22 additional rigs drilling for oil in Canada this week compared with last week. The oil-directed rig count stood at 150 units this week, down 6 from this time last year. There were 7 additional gas-directed rigs working this week. With 76 gas-directed rigs working this week, the count is up 3 from this time last year.

In the US, the rig count fell by a single unit, reaching 543 rigs still working. This week's count is down 37 from the year-ago total of 580 rotary rigs.

US land rigs were down by 1 to reach 524 rigs working this week. The count is down 40 from this time last year. Offshore rigs increased were unchanged at 16, and those drilling in inland waters also remained unchanged, landing at 3 rigs working.

The number of US rigs drilling for gas fell 2 to 122 this week, while the number of rigs drilling for oil rose 1 to 410. Eleven rigs remained unclassified, unchanged from last week.

Leading the week's decline was Texas, down 2 units with 228 units still working. Louisiana dropped a single unit to end the week with 39 rigs working.

New Mexico added 2 rigs this week for a total of 102.