Rig count increases for the sixth time in past seven weeks
The current count is up 5% in the last month and up 27% year-over-year, according to Enverus. This was the sixth time the count increased in the past seven weeks and put the total number up 32, or 8%, over this time in 2020.
The most notable changes during the past month occurred in the Midcontinent (up 12), Gulf Coast (up seven) and Ark-La-Tex (up six) regions.
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US Oil Rig Count Dips, Gas Rig Count Inches Up
WTI crude futures in the U.S. were trading around $64/bbl on April 30, putting the contract on track to rise for the fifth time in the past six months.
With prices mostly rising since last November, some oil and gas producers plan to boost spending in 2021 after cutting drilling and completion expenditures over the past two years. That spending increase still remains small as most E&P companies continue to focus on boosting cash flow, reducing debt and increasing shareholder returns rather than adding output.
Crude oil output in the U.S. dropped by over 1 million bbl/d in February to 9.862 million bbl/d, its lowest levels since October 2017, according to a monthly government report.
February’s data indicates that is the first time that oil production in the U.S. has dropped below 10 million bbl/d since January 2018, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The output drop came as a freeze in Texas shut in some production, but declines were also seen in other major oil-producing states.
Monthly gross natural gas production in the U.S. Lower 48 states fell by 7.8 Bcf/d, the biggest monthly decline on record, to 94.8 Bcf in February, the EIA said.
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