US drillers increase oil rigs as WTI surges by 14%

U.S. Oil and Gas Rig Activity Update

According to the latest figures released by Baker Hughes on Friday, the number of operational oil and gas drilling rigs in the United States increased this week, reaching a total of 551. This represents a decrease of 41 rigs compared to the same period last year.

Oil rigs saw an uptick of 4, bringing the count to 411, which is 75 fewer than a year ago. Gas rigs dropped by 2, totaling 132—31 more than last year at this time. The miscellaneous rig count remained unchanged at 8.

Production and Completion Trends

Recent data from the EIA indicates that weekly U.S. crude oil output declined by 6,000 barrels per day for the week ending February 27, averaging 13.696 million barrels per day, which is 166,000 barrels below the record high.

Primary Vision’s Frac Spread Count, which estimates the number of crews finishing wells, climbed by 7 during the week ending February 27, following a similar increase the previous week.

Regional Rig Counts

The Permian Basin saw its active rig count rise by 1 to 241, though this is still 63 fewer than last year. Eagle Ford’s rig count increased by 3, reaching 43—6 less than the previous year.

Oil Price Volatility

On Friday, oil prices experienced significant fluctuations. The Strait of Hormuz, a critical global oil passage, remains mostly unused, while Iraq and Kuwait are reducing production due to limited storage options. Brent crude futures surged to $94.10 per barrel, marking a 10.17% increase and a $20 jump week-over-week. WTI prices rose by $11.21 per barrel to $92.22, up more than $23 compared to last week.

Industry Response to Price Changes

U.S. drilling operations are not expected to respond immediately to the recent spike in oil prices. Historically, changes in rig counts lag behind price increases by several months, as companies typically wait to see if elevated prices persist before investing further.

Report by Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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