US rig count up for second straight week

The number of rigs extracting crude oil and natural gas in the US rose by nine to 641 last week, Baker Hughes reported.

PHOTO: Oil field with pump jacks in Bakersfield, US. Getty Images

Crude oil rigs rose by two to 515, reflecting the addition of two units in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico – the biggest American oilfield. The total Permian rig count stood at 322 units. The US natural gas rig count rose by eight units to 121 last week, after falling for five consecutive weeks.

Crude oil prices have jumped in recent weeks on expectations of tight supplies in the year's second half, encouraging producers to increase drilling activity. Front-month ICE Brent contract was trading at $94.79/bbl at 08.00 CDT (13.00 GMT) today, up by $19.67/bbl from the settlement level on 30 June.

The total US rig count is down by 122, or 16% from a year earlier.

By Debarati Bhattacharjee

Please get in touch with comments or additional info to news@engine.online