US rig count down seven as prices increase

The rig count in the Permian Basin was down three this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 305 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 341 rigs were active in the region.

Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is down seven from last week at 581 rigs. A year ago, 674 rigs were active. The count shows that 479 rigs sought oil, down six from the previous week, and 97 explored for natural gas, down one from the previous week. The count also shows five 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 $78.02 per barrel, up 81 cents from last Friday’s close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $81.54 per barrel, up 81 cents from the previous week.