The rig count in the Permian Basin was up by one this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 452 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 477 rigs were active in the region.
Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is up one from last week at 984 rigs. A year ago, 1060 rigs were active. The count shows that 800 rigs sought oil, up three from the previous week, and 184 explored for natural gas, down two from the previous week.
The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. It bottomed out in May of 2016 at 404.
The regional benchmark Plains-West Texas Intermediate Posting ended Friday at $50.00 per barrel, down $5.00 from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $53.50 per barrel, down $5.13 from the previous week.
