US Rig Count Edges Up to 604 as Permian Adds Another Unit

The US rig count rose by one unit this week to reach 604, according to the Baker Hughes Rig Count, while Canada shed three rigs and now stands at 223. The arithmetic is modest. The direction, at least on the American side of the border, is upward.

The gain was not distributed evenly. Baker Hughes reports that three regions moved higher: the Granite Wash, the Haynesville and the Permian, each adding one rig. One region moved lower. The Williston dropped a single unit and now runs 35 rigs. Every other region tracked by the survey held flat, which is its own kind of statement about the current drilling mood.

What the basin table actually says

The Permian remains the center of gravity. At 273 rigs, the basin alone accounts for roughly 45 of every 100 rigs working in the United States this week. Put another way, nearly half of the national fleet sits in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The one-rig addition changes little, but it confirms the basin's role as the default destination for incremental capital.

The Haynesville matched the Permian's pace, adding one rig to reach 56. The gas-weighted play of northern Louisiana and East Texas continues to hold second place among the named basins, a reminder that natural gas drilling has not vanished from the ledger. The Granite Wash, an Anadarko basin play straddling Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle, gained one rig to reach 23.

The Williston carried the lone loss. The North Dakota-centered basin fell one rig to 35. That is a small number in absolute terms. It is also the only decline on the board.

The rest of the table read as follows:

• Eagle Ford: 50 rigs, no change
• Cana Woodford: 18 rigs, no change
• Marcellus: 23 rigs, no change
• Granite Wash: 23 rigs, up 1
• Utica: 10 rigs, no change
• DJ-Niobrara: 9 rigs, no change
• Barnett: 2 rigs, no change
• Ardmore Woodford: 2 rigs, no change
• Arkoma Woodford: 0 rigs, no change
• Mississippian: 0 rigs, no change

Two basins — the Arkoma Woodford and the Mississippian — show zero active rigs. That is the quiet headline inside the table. Both were once legitimate theaters of activity. Neither currently supports a single listed unit, at least as Baker Hughes counts them.

Canada moves the other way

North of the border, the Canadian count fell by three rigs to 223. The combined North American total therefore landed at 827, a net decline of two for the week. Canada's swings tend to be sharper than those of its southern neighbor, driven by seasonal access and the rhythm of winter drilling programs. One week does not establish a trend.

The takeaway

One rig added, one basin down, nearly everything else frozen in place. The US count of 604 is the number to watch, and the Permian's 273-rig share is the number that matters most within it. The next Baker Hughes release will show whether the Williston's dip was noise or the start of something. Flat, on this evidence, is the operating word.