Shallow Vertical Wells Get Lift in October; Overall U.S. Rig Count Remains Flat Versus September
HOUSTON, Nov. 5, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- S&P Global Platts Analytics, today announced the total U.S. rig count for October 2018 was 1,174, down 1 (0%) from September 2018, and up 126 (+12%) from October 2017. This rig count includes U.S. onshore, U.S. inland waters, and U.S. offshore Gulf of Mexico drilling rigs.
- October U.S. land rig count: 1,144, down 2 (0%) from the previous month and up 124 (+12%) from October 2017
- October U.S. inland waters and Gulf of Mexico rig count: , up 1 (+3%) from the previous month and up 2 (+7%) from October 2017
"While month-over-month rig count performance is basically flat, it's worth taking a look under the hood, where we see an increase in rigs for drilling conventional, shallow natural gas wells, evidence that smaller-scale natural gas producers were taking advantage of the visibly stronger natural gas prices," said S&P Global Platts Analytics Senior Industry Analyst Trey Cowan.
Natural gas prices, according to the spot, physical market price of Henry Hub, as assessed by S&P Global Platts, showed a rise of 8% during October.
"Colorado could hold the most volatility in the months ahead," said Cowan. "If Proposition 112* is approved at the U.S. November 6 Midterm Elections, we could see a rush to get wells drilled before permits expire and then a precipitous fall in drilling for the state."
S&P Global Platts U.S. Rig Counts | ||||||||
Oct | Sep | Month | % | Oct | Variance | YOY % | ||
Colorado | 35 | 37 | -2 | -5% | 40 | -5 | -13% | |
Louisiana | 53 | 49 | 4 | 8% | 51 | 2 | 4% | |
New Mexico | 89 | 98 | -9 | -9% | 67 | 22 | 33% | |
North Dakota | 60 | 60 | 0 | 0% | 52 | 8 | 15% | |
Oklahoma | 157 | 155 | 2 | 1% | 134 | 23 | 17% | |
Texas | 561 | 563 | -2 | 0% | 489 | 72 | 15% | |
Rest of U.S. Land | 189 | 184 | 5 | 3% | 187 | 2 | 1% | |
U.S. Land Subtotal | 1,144 | 1,146 | -2 | 0% | 1,020 | 124 | 12% | |
U.S. Inland Waters | 3 | 2 | 1 | 50% | 6 | -3 | -50% | |
U.S. Gulf of Mexico | 27 | 27 | 0 | 0% | 22 | 5 | 23% | |
U.S. Inland and Gulf of Mexico | 30 | 29 | 1 | 3% | 28 | 2 | 7% | |
Total U.S. Rig Count | 1,174 | 1,175 | -1 | 0% | 1,048 | 126 | 12% | |
*Colorado's Proposition 112 would require that any new oil and gas development be located at least 2500 feet from any structure intended for human occupancy.
CONTACT
Kathleen Tanzy, + 1 917 331 4607, [email protected]
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SOURCE S&P Global Platts
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