US Oil and Gas Drilling Rigs See Surprise Uptick Amid Slumping Production

The number of active oil and gas drilling rigs in the US has increased, according to data published by Baker Hughes. The total rig count rose to 599, up 50 from this time last year. The increase was driven by a rise in the number of active oil rigs, which reached 455, a level 31 above what it was at the same time last year.

The number of gas rigs also saw a small increase, rising by one to 135, while miscellaneous rigs remained unchanged at nine. The Permian Basin saw an uptick in drilling activity, with one more rig added to bring the total to 270, up from 17 less than this time last year.

The latest data on US crude oil production shows that weekly output fell for the second week in a row during the week ending September 18. The EIA reported that US crude oil production averaged 13.939 million barrels per day (bpd), down slightly from the previous week but up by 438,000 bpd from this time last year.