The U.S. active rig count had a solid gain last week, while the price of oil continued its steady climb, reaching its highest mark since December of 2014.
After sliding by three the week before, the combined oil and gas rig count rose by 11 this past week, moving to a mark of 947. That is up by 235 year-over-year (YoY), or 33.0 percent. The U.S. added 12 oil rigs, with its count of 759 now up 193 YoY, or 34.1 percent. The U.S. lost one oil rig, with its count of 188 up 43 YoY, or 29.7 percent. The U.S. miscellaneous rig count remained at zero.
Of last week's combined rig count — provided by oilfield services provider Baker Hughes — Texas added 13, West Virginia added four and New Mexico added three. Oklahoma lost four and Louisiana lost three, while Ohio and Utah each lost one.
Canada/North America
Canada's seasonal rig count gain continued last week, as it added 13 after rising by 49 and 102 the previous two weeks, respectively. Canada's rig count has now risen by 202 since the count taken Dec. 29. Canada's combined rig count rose to 338, which is down by 7 YoY, or 2.0 percent. Canada added 12 oil rigs and one gas rig last week, with its oil rig count of 220 now up by 200 YoY (+10.0 percent) and its gas rig count of 118 down by 27 (-18.6 percent).
Friday's North American combined rig count of 1,285 increased by 24 from a week earlier and is now up by 228 YoY, or 21.6 percent.
Oil Price Update
The price of oil has been on a steady climb ever since late August 2017, and that trend continued throughout last week. WTI Crude oil gained $2.62 throughout the week, opening Jan. 22 at $64.43 and closing Friday's trading at $66.15 — its highest price in more than 3 years since late December 2014. Through Friday, oil had climbed $5.72 since Jan. 1 of this year. Oil opened Monday at $66.33 and had regressed to $65.51 as of 8:23 a.m. CT.
