Active US rig count rebounds to 5-month high, Canada falls

The number of active rotary rigs in the US increased by seven week over week (w/w) to 629 as of March 15. Oil rigs rose by six to 510, gas rigs increased by one to 116, and miscellaneous rigs held steady at three.

This week there are 125 fewer active US rigs compared to the same week last year. In this time oil rig counts have fallen by 79, gas rigs are down by 46, and miscellaneous rigs are unchanged.

Canada rigs

The number of operating oil and gas rigs in Canada declined by 18 to 207 this week. Oil rigs fell by 13 to 128, while gas rigs declined by five to 79.

Active drilling levels in Canada are exactly where they were this time last year, though the number of active oil rigs is up by six and gas rigs are down by the same amount.

International rig count

The international rig count is updated monthly. The total number of active rigs for the month of February was 958, down seven from January, but up 43 from February 2023.

The Baker Hughes rig count is important to the steel industry because 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. For a history of the US and Canadian rig counts, visit the rig count page on our website.