OCTG

Rig count: US activity recovers, Canada's dips

August 9, 2024

US drill rig activity recovered last week after slipping the prior week, according to the latest data from Baker Hughes. But Canada’s counts edged down following a five-week run-up. Despite the decline, Canada’s rig count remains near a five-month high.

US rigs

In the week ended Aug. 9, the number of active drilling rigs in the US improved by two from the previous week for a total of 588 rigs. Oil rigs were up three to 485, natural gas rigs fell by one to 97, and miscellaneous rigs held steady at six.

There were 66 fewer active rigs in the US during the week compared to the same week last year. The number of active oil rigs was down by 40, gas rigs were down by 26, and miscellaneous rigs were unchanged.

Canadian rigs

The number of rigs operating in Canada decreased by two from the week prior to 217. Oil rigs dipped by three to 147, gas rigs were unchanged at 69, and miscellaneous rigs were up to one.

Currently, 27 more drilling rigs are operating in Canada than there were one year ago. Oil rigs were up by 31, gas rigs were down by five, and miscellaneous rigs were up one.

International rig count

The international rig count is updated monthly. The total number of active rigs for the month of July fell to 934. That’s down by 23 compared to the June count and 27 less than levels one year prior.

The Baker Hughes rig count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of demand for oil country tubular goods (OCTG), a key end market for steel sheet. A rotary rig rotates the drill pipe from the surface to either drill a new well or sidetrack an existing one. For a history of the US and Canadian rig counts, visit the rig count page on our website.

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is a senior analyst for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. Based in CRU’s Pittsburgh office, David can be reached at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.