Number of operating rigs drops by eight
HOUSTON — Oilfield services company Baker Hughes Inc. said the number of rigs exploring for oil and natural gas in the U.S. declined by eight this week to 787.
The Houston-based firm said Friday that 595 rigs were seeking oil and 192 were exploring for natural gas. A year ago, with oil prices about double the prices now, 1,918 rigs were active.
Among major oil- and gas-producing states, New Mexico lost five rigs; Oklahoma and Texas each declined by two; and Colorado and North Dakota each lost one.
Louisiana gained three rigs, Wyoming gained two and California gained one.
Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Alaska, Arkansas, Kansas and Utah were unchanged.
The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981 and bottomed at 488 in 1999.