North American Rotary Rig Counts

The U.S. rotary rig count from Baker Hughes was down 4 at 1,071 for the week of December 14, 2018. It is 141 rigs (15.2%) higher than last year.

The number of rotary rigs drilling for oil is down 4 at 873. There are 126 more rigs targeting oil than last year. Rigs drilling for oil are 81.5 percent of all drilling activity. 

Rigs targeting natural gas were unchanged at 198. The number of rigs drilling for gas is18 higher than last year.

Year-over-year oil exploration in the U.S. is up  16.9 percent. Gas exploration is up 8.2 percent. The weekly average of crude oil spot price is 9.8 percent lower than last year and natural gas spot prices are 58.3 percent higher than last year. Daily crude oil and natural gas futures and spot prices are available on our site.

Canadian rig activity was down 12 at 174 for the week of December 14, 2018 and is 64 (26.9%) lower than last year. Rigs targeting oil were down 7 at 95 and are 39 (29.1%) higher than last year. Gas directed rig count at 79 was down 5 and is 25 rigs (24.0%) lower than last year. Canadian drilling falls rapidly in the spring to avoid environmental damage moving drilling equipment during the spring thaw and rainy season. With large weather related seasonal swings, even year-over-year comparisons can lead to incorrect conclusions. Also, Canadians take their holidays more serious than their counterparts in the U.S.

North American Rig Count				Change		Percent Change
	12/14/2018	12/07/2018	12/15/2017	Weekly	Annual	Weekly	Annual
Total U.S.	1,071	1,075	930	(4)	141	-0.4%	15.2%
Offshore	23	23	19	0	4	0.0%	21.1%
Land	1,048	1,052	911	(4)	137	-0.4%	15.0%
Inland Waters	3	2	2	1	1	50.0%	50.0%
Oil	873	877	747	(4)	126	-0.5%	16.9%
Percent	81.5%	81.6%	80.3%	-0.1%	1.2%
Gas	198	198	183	0	15	0.0%	8.2%
Percent	18.5%	18.4%	19.7%	0.1%	-1.2%
Directional	73	72	69	1	4	1.4%	5.8%
Horizontal	927	933	801	-6	126	-0.6%	15.7%
Vertical	71	70	60	1	11	1.4%	18.3%
Gulf of Mexico	23	23	19	0	4	0.0%	21.1%
Gulf Oil	19	18	15	1	4	5.6%	26.7%
Percent	82.6%	78.3%	78.9%	4.3%	3.7%
Gulf Gas	4	5	4	-1	0	-20.0%	0.0%
Percent	17.4%	21.7%	21.1%	-4.3%	-3.7%
Canada	174	186	238	(12)	(64)	-6.5%	-26.9%
Oil	95	102	134	(7)	(39)	-6.9%	-29.1%
Percent	54.6%	54.8%	56.3%	-0.2%	-1.7%
Gas	79	84	104	(5)	(25)	-6.0%	-24.0%
Percent	45.4%	45.2%	43.7%	0.2%	1.7%
North America	1,245	1,261	1,168	(16)	77	-1.3%	6.6%
Prices
Oil $/bbl.	$51.62	$52.69	$57.20	($1.07)	($5.58)	-2.0%	-9.8%
Oil $/mmbtu	$8.90	$9.08	$9.86	($0.18)	($0.96)	-2.0%	-9.8%
Gas $/mmbtu	$4.30	$4.42	$2.72	($0.12)	$1.58	-2.7%	58.3%

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Monthly: International Rig Counts

International rig count, which excludes the US and Canada, is down 26 to 991 for the month of November 2018 and is 49 rigs (5.2%) higher than last year's 942 rigs.

The number of rotary rigs targeting oil in November was 783 down 15 from October and is 63 (8.8%) higher than last year. International gas rigs were down 8 for the month at 179 and are 7 (3.8%) lower than last year. Miscellaneous or unclassified rigs at 29 are down 3 for the month and 7 from last year.

International Rig Count					Change		Percent Change
		November 2018	October 2018	November 2017	Monthly	Annual	Monthly	Annual
International	Oil	783	798	720	-15	63	-1.9%	8.8%
	Gas	179	187	186	-8	-7	-4.3%	-3.8%
	Misc.	29	32	36	-3	-7	-9.4%	-19.4%
	Total	991	1017	942	-26	49	-2.6%	5.2%
Europe	Oil	53	58	52	-5	1	-8.6%	1.9%
	Gas	17	18	15	-1	2	-5.6%	13.3%
	Misc.	13	16	18	-3	-5	-18.8%	-27.8%
	Total	83	92	85	-9	-2	-9.8%	-2.4%
Middle East	Oil	304	310	290	-6	14	-1.9%	4.8%
	Gas	90	93	88	-3	2	-3.2%	2.3%
	Misc.	0	1	0	-1	0	-100.0%	N.A.
	Total	394	404	378	-10	16	-2.5%	4.2%
Africa	Oil	82	87	59	-5	23	-5.7%	39.0%
	Gas	12	13	19	-1	-7	-7.7%	-36.8%
	Misc.	9	7	7	2	2	28.6%	28.6%
	Total	103	107	85	-4	18	-3.7%	21.2%
Latin America	Oil	170	173	159	-3	11	-1.7%	6.9%
	Gas	19	20	21	-1	-2	-5.0%	-9.5%
	Misc.	0	0	1	0	-1	N.A.	-100.0%
	Total	189	193	181	-4	8	-2.1%	4.4%
Asian Pacific	Oil	174	170	160	4	14	2.4%	8.8%
	Gas	41	43	43	-2	-2	-4.7%	-4.7%
	Misc.	7	8	10	-1	-3	-12.5%	-30.0%
	Total	222	221	213	1	9	0.5%	4.2%

The Rig Count page will be updated as the data becomes available. US rotary and Canadian rig counts are updated weekly.  International, world and workover rig counts are updated mid month.  The oil price shown in all long term graphs and all but the short term graph of US and Canadian rotary rig counts is US average wellhead price. The price in the short term US and Canadian rotary rig count graphs is WTI spot.