First quarterly US rig count drop since 2020

The number of rigs extracting crude oil and natural gas in the US fell by three to 755 last week, after rising for two consecutive weeks, Baker Hughes reported.

PHOTO: Drill rig in northern West Virginia's Marcellus shale formation. Getty Images

The US oil rig count fell by one to 592 last week, while the gas rig count was down by two to 160. The total rig count in the Permian Basin in Texas - the biggest US oilfield – fell by one unit to 352.

Across the first quarter as a whole, the total rig count fell by 24 units, compared to the fourth quarter of last year. That was the first quarterly drop since the third quarter of 2020, when activity was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, the total count in March rose two units from February, which had recorded the lowest in 32 months.

Brent crude prices recorded their third straight quarterly decline at the end of March, the first time since 2015, leading to some jitters in the market. US natural gas prices have tumbled since February, amid lower demand and a warmer-than-expected winter, leading to some producers to take rigs out of operation.

However, after OPEC and its allies announced a surprise output cut at the weekend, US drillers could ramp up production over the coming months to make up any supply shortfalls.

By Debarati Bhattacharjee

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