New Mexico gains 6 rigs as US rig count rises to 1,032

May 04, 2018

rig_4x4-01.pngAssociated Press | May 4, 2018

The number of rigs exploring for oil and natural gas in the U.S. increased by 11 this week to 1,032.

At this time a year ago there were 877 active rigs.

Houston oilfield services company Baker Hughes reported Friday that 834 rigs drilled for oil this week and 196 for gas. Two were listed as miscellaneous.

Among major oil- and gas-producing states, New Mexico added six rigs and Oklahoma and Texas each gained two. Alaska, Louisiana and North Dakota added one apiece.

Colorado declined by one.

Arkansas, California, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming were unchanged.

The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. It bottomed out in May of 2016 at 404.