Drilling Totals Steady in Latest Baker Count as U.S. Drops One Rig
In a week of minor adjustments, a drop in oil activity caused the US rig count to drop by one unit to 760 for the week ending Friday (February 17), according to Baker Hughes Co. (BKR) data updated numbers.
Domestic changes for the week included a decrease of two rigs in oil-driven drilling, partially offset by the addition of one natural gas-driven rig.
Land drilling was flat for the period, while the Gulf of Mexico was down one unit to 17 from 12 in the year-ago period. Total directional units decreased by one domestically while total horizontal and vertical wells remained flat week-over-week.
The combined 760 active US rigs on Friday compares to 645 rigs operating in the same period last year, according to BKR figures, which are based in part on data from Enverus.
The rig count in Canada decreased by two units to 248 for the period, with a four rig decrease in gas-fired rigs partially offset by the addition of two oil-fired units.
Most of the major drill regions have remained stable week over week in the latest BKR data. The Cana Woodford added two rigs to bring her total to 29, up from 26 at this point a year ago.
Counting by state, Louisiana dropped two rigs, while Colorado and New Mexico each dropped one. Meanwhile, Oklahoma and Wyoming each added one rig to their respective totals.
Recent government data showed US crude production held steady at a pandemic-era high as new forecasts called for rising global demand linked to an expected surge in China’s travel fuel consumption.
American producers produced 12.3 million barrels per day for the week ended February 10, up from the previous week and the highest in nearly three years, according to data from the latest Weekly Petroleum Status Report from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA ) showed.
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The latest print from EIA, released on Wednesday, also slightly surpassed last year’s level of 11.6 million b/d. It was nearing the record 13.1 million barrels per day set by US exploration and production companies in March 2020 as the coronavirus outbreak began to dampen demand.