Baker Hughes reports that US drillers have added oil and gas rigs to their fleet for the fifth consecutive week.

Baker Hughes, a leading energy services company, said that U.S. firms added oil and gas rigs this week for a fifth consecutive week for the first since May 2022.

In the week ending February 28, the oil and gas rig counts, an early indicator for future production, increased by one, to 593, its highest level since June.

Baker Hughes reported that despite this week's increase in rigs the total count is still 36 rigs or 6% lower than this time last year.

Baker Hughes reported that oil rigs dropped by two this week to 486, while gas-rigs increased by three to 102.

Total oil and gas drilling rigs increased by 11 in February, the highest monthly increase since November 20,22. Oil rigs also rose seven times, the largest gain ever since that month. Gas rigs also increased four times.

Oil and gas rig counts are expected to decline by 5% and 20% respectively in 2024, as the lower U.S. gas and oil prices in recent years have prompted energy companies to concentrate more on increasing shareholder returns and paying off debt than increasing output.

The 22 independent exploration companies (E&Ps) tracked by the U.S. financial firm TD Cowen have said they plan to reduce their spending by 1% in 2025 compared to 2024.

This compares to spending that is roughly flat in 2024 and with increases of 27%, 40%, and 44% in 2023.

(source: Reuters)