Basin rig count picks up four as prices drop

The rig count in the Permian Basin was up four this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 323 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 224 rigs were active in the region.

Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is up three from last week at 673 rigs. A year ago, 430 rigs were active. The count shows that 533 rigs sought oil, up two from the previous week, and 138 explored for natural gas, up one from the previous week.

The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. It bottomed out in August of 2020 at 244.

The regional benchmark Plains-West Texas Intermediate Posting ended Friday at $95.75 per barrel, down $14.63 from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $99.27 per barrel, down $14.63 from the previous week.