US rig count inches up, Canada's count tumbles

The US rig count inched up by two from the previous week’s count, to a total of 622, as of Dec. 29. Oil rigs increased by two to 500, while the number of gas rigs went unchanged at 120. Miscellaneous rigs also remain unchanged at two.

Compared to the same period one year ago, the US count is down by 157. There are 121 fewer oil rigs, 36 fewer gas rigs, while miscellaneous rigs are unchanged at two.

Canadian rig count

Canada’s drilling firms dropped active rigs from 146 to 86, off 60 from the previous week. Oil rigs dropped by 54 from 81 to 27 and gas rigs moved down from 65 to 59.

Year over year there are two more oil rigs and the same amount of gas rigs. Overall, there are two more rigs than there were at the same time in 2022.

International rig count

The international rig count is updated monthly. The total number of active rigs during the month of November was 978, up 16 from the previous month, and increasing by 68 from November 2022.

The Baker Hughes rig count is important to the steel industry as it is a leading indicator of demand for oil country tubular goods (OCTG), a key end market for steel sheet.

A rotary rig rotates the drill pipe from the surface to either drill a new well or sidetrack an existing one. Wells are drilled to explore for, develop, and produce oil or natural gas. Baker Hughes’ rotary rig count includes only those rigs that are significant consumers of oilfield services and supplies.

For a history of the US and Canadian rig counts, visit the rig count page on our website.