The total count of oil and gas rigs climbed by 10 to 884.
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The number of U.S. oil-drilling rigs, which is a proxy for activity in the oil industry, had fallen sharply since oil prices headed south past year. The count had declined for 29 weeks until July 2, when oil companies began sending rigs back to oil fields in Texas and elsewhere.
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The US oil rig count rose by 6 this week to total 670, according to driller Baker Hughes. The global offshore rig count for July 2015 was 264, down 13 from the 277 counted in June 2015, and down 72 from the 336 counted in July 2014. This figure reverts the downtrend seen last week. Six rigs were added in the Permian Basin and three came offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. “The active rig count acts as a leading indicator of demand for products used in drilling, completing, producing and processing hydrocarbons”. Others have started adding more rigs. The biggest losing state was Pennsylvania, which saw the net retreat of three rigs. Baker Hughes initiated the monthly global rig count in 1975. A year ago, the count ascended to 387. “This represents a slowdown compared with the past two years in which production growth has averaged about 3 Bcf/d. A 5% surprise to the upside in Texas and North Dakota would quickly push end October 2016 storage levels above the 4 Tcf level”.
