Oil and gas rig counts hold total in balance
The total rig count for active U.S. rigs held steady at 787 after 8 consecutive weeks of falling. The last time the U.S. rig count remained the same week-over-week was the week ended August 14, 2015, when it was at 884, before climbing by one rig, and then declining by 98 rigs over the course of two months.
The total number of rigs drilling for oil in the U.S., the main source of the decline in total rig counts over the past two months, fell by just one this week to 594. The number of rigs drilling for oil is 12% lower than on August 14, and 41% lower than where it stood a year ago.
Rigs drilling for gas have declined more slowly over the last two months, with the rig count this week showing an increase of one rig to a total of 193, balancing out the single oil rig laid down over the course of the week. Over the past two months, the number of rigs drilling for gas has fallen by 9% from 211, but the overall decline from this time last year is even more pronounced than in the oil rigs. Since this time last year, the number of gas rigs has fallen 42% from 332, according to Baker Hughes (ticker: BHI).
