03 March 2014, News Wires – The count of rigs exploring for oil and gas in the US was down by two this week to 1769, according to the latest data from Houston-based service firm Baker Hughes.
The tally of rigs drilling for oil added five to 1430, up by 97 from year ago. The count searching for gas dropped by seven to 335, off 85 from a year ago.
The number exploring in the Gulf of Mexico fell by two this week to 53. Texas’ Permian basin saw the largest change in rig count over the week, gaining six units to 493.
Oklahoma’s Ardmore Woodford and North Dakota’s Williston basin each added two rigs for totals of nine and 176 respectively.
On the decline were the Granite Wash and Marcellus plays, losing three and four units respectively for totals of 51 and 78.
State-wise Alaska gained three rigs for a count of 17, while Louisiana and West Virginia each shed three for totals of 102 and 27.
– Upstream