US rig count up four while prices are down

The rig count in the Permian Basin was unchanged this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 311 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 352 rigs were active in the region.

Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is up four from last week at 622 rigs. A year ago, 784 rigs were active. The count shows that 500 rigs sought oil, unchanged from the previous week, and 117 explored for natural gas, up three 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 $72.02 per barrel, down 35 cents from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $75.54 per barrel, down 35 cents from the previous week.