Rig count increases by 5 this week to 940
HOUSTON (AP) — The number of rigs exploring for oil and natural gas in the U.S. increased by five this week to 940.
That’s up from the 522 rigs that were active a year ago.
Houston oilfield services company Baker Hughes said Friday that 750 rigs sought oil and 189 explored for natural gas this week. One was listed as miscellaneous.
Among major oil- and gas-producing states, Utah gained four rigs and Louisiana increased by two. New Mexico and North Dakota each gained one.
Oklahoma lost three rigs and Texas shed two.
Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Wyoming were unchanged.
The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. It bottomed out in May of 2016 at 404.