Friday, January 31, 2025

Baker Hughes reports that US drillers have added oil and gas rigs to their fleet for the first time in 8 weeks.

January 31, 2025

Baker Hughes, a leading energy services company, said that the U.S. added oil and gas rigs this week for the first eight-week period.

The number of oil and gas drilling rigs, a good indicator of future production, increased by six in the week ending January 31.

Baker Hughes reported that despite this week's increase in rigs the total count is still 37 rigs or 6% lower than this time last year.

Baker Hughes reported that oil rigs increased by seven this week to 479, while gas rigs decreased by one to 98. This weekly increase in oil rigs is the largest since February 2023.

The Gulf of Mexico saw a drop in the number of rigs to 11 - the lowest level since March 2022.

The Haynesville Shale in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas saw a drop of one rig to 28. This is the lowest number since January 2017.

Total oil and Gas Rigs declined by seven for the month. This is the highest monthly decline since June. Both oil and gas were down by four rigs in January.

Oil and gas rig counts are expected to decline by 5% and 20% respectively in 2024, 2023 and 2024. This is because lower U.S. gas and oil prices in the last couple of years have prompted energy companies to concentrate more on reducing debt and increasing shareholder returns than increasing output.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported in its most recent monthly report that U.S. crude production dropped by 122,000 barrels a day in November, to 13,314 million bpd. This is down from a record monthly high of 13,436 million in October.

According to the agency, the gross natural gas production of the Lower 48 States in the United States increased by 0.2% to 115.8 bcfd in November. This compares to a monthly high of 117.8 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in February 2024.

According to oilfield executives, and analysts, U.S. firms that provide oilfield services are experiencing lower prices and revenues this year, as oil producers have become more efficient and limit their spending.

Baker Hughes beat Wall Street expectations for the fourth quarter profit on Thursday as strong demand for natural-gas equipment and services offset weak sales in North America. (Reporting and editing by Nia William and Bill Berkrot in New York, with reporting by Scott DiSavino from New York)

(source: Reuters)

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