Dec. 6—The rig count in the Permian Basin was up one this week, the latest count Friday by Baker Hughes shows, with 304 rigs active in the region. A year ago, 313 rigs were active in the region.
Nationally, the oil and gas rig count is up seven from last week at 589 rigs. A year ago, 626 rigs were active. The count shows that 482 rigs sought oil, up five from the previous week, and 102 explored for natural gas, up two from the previous week. The count also shows five miscellaneous rigs, unchanged from the previous week.
The U.S. rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. It bottomed out in August of 2020 at 244.
The regional benchmark Plains-West Texas Intermediate Posting ended Friday at $63.68 per barrel, down 80 cents from last Friday's close. National benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude ended at $67.20 per barrel, down 80 cents from the previous week.