US rig count down by 2 more, now at 251
Kristen Nelson Petroleum News
The number of active oil and gas drilling rigs in the U.S. continues to drop, with the Baker Hughes’ weekly U.S. rig count for July 24 down two from the previous week to 251 and down 695 from 945 a year ago.
Each week in the last 12 the count has set a new record for low number of rigs, 374 rigs on May 8 of this year; 339 rigs on May 15; 318 on May 22; 301 on May 29; 284 on June 5; 279 on June 12; 266 on June 19; 265 on June 26; 263 on July 2; 258 on July 10; 253 on July 17; and 251 for the current week. The Houston oilfield services company has issued a weekly rig count since 1944. Prior to this year, the low was 404 rigs in May 2016.
Baker Hughes said 181 rigs targeted oil, up one from the previous week and down 595 from a year ago, while 68 targeted gas, down three from the previous week and down 101 from a year ago. There were two miscellaneous rigs active, unchanged from the previous week and up by one from a year ago.
Twenty-two of the holes were directional, 215 were horizontal and 14 were vertical.
Alaska count unchanged New Mexico (51) was up by a single rig from the previous week.
Rig counts were unchanged for Alaska (3), California (4), Colorado (5), Louisiana (30), North Dakota (10), Ohio (6), Oklahoma (10) and Wyoming (1).
Pennsylvania (20), Texas (103) and West Virginia (5) were each down by one rig from the previous week.
Baker Hughes shows Alaska with three active rigs July 24, down by six from a year ago.
The rig count in the nation’s most active basin, the Permian (126), was up by two rigs from the previous week, and down by 317 from a count of 443 a year ago.
Baker Hughes has issued weekly rig counts for the U.S. and Canada since 1944 and began issuing international rig counts in 1975.
The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. This week’s count of 251 is a new low, surpassing lows set in the previous 11 weeks. Prior to that the previous low was 404 rigs in May 2016.
- KRISTEN NELSON
|