US oil and gas rig count slips for third straight week

The number of rigs extracting crude oil and natural gas in the US fell by five to 664 last week - the lowest since March 2022, Baker Hughes has reported.

PHOTO: Oil fracking drill rig in the Permian Basin in West Texas, US. Getty Images

The number of oil rigs fell by one unit to 529 last week, which is also the lowest since March last year. The gas rig count fell by three units to 128. There were also seven miscellaneous rigs, one less than in the prior week.

Total oil and gas rigs fell by 10 units in July, the eighth consecutive monthly decline.

US oil and gas producers have slowed drilling activity in recent months after oil and gas prices cooled in the first half of this year from record highs recorded last year. The EIA says US oil output will likely drop in August for the first time this year, reflecting the pullback in activity.

The total US rig count is down by 103, or 13%, from a year earlier.

By Debarati Bhattacharjee

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