Basin rig count down one as prices continue to decline

The rig count in the Permian Basin was down one this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 303 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 329 rigs were active in the region.

Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is down three from last week at 586 rigs. A year ago, 659 rigs were active. The count shows that 482 rigs sought oil, unchanged from the previous week, and 98 explored for natural gas, down three from the previous week. The count also shows six miscellaneous rigs, unchanged 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 $70.00 per barrel, down $3.64 from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $73.52 per barrel, down $3.64 from the previous week.