US rig count gains 13 as oil prices continue to rise

The rig count in the Permian Basin was up one this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 293 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 189 rigs were active in the region.

Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is up 13 from last week at 601 rigs. A year ago, 373 rigs were active. The count shows that 492 rigs sought oil, up 11 from the previous week, and 109 explored for natural gas, up two 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 $80.30 per barrel, up $4.92 from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $83.82 per barrel, up $4.92 from the previous week.