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US Rig Counts Show Mixed Signals as Horizontal Activity Modestly Recovers, TPH Says

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US land drilling activity showed conflicting signals last week, though a modest recovery in horizontal rigs offered a stabilizing counterweight to ongoing data volatility, TPH Energy strategists said in a note Monday.

TPH analysts said that data trackers presented a split picture for the week. The Enverus rig count fell by 3 rigs over the week to 613, bringing its trailing four-week average to a net gain of three.

On the contrary, Baker Hughes (BKR) reported an unchanged count of 572 rigs, flat from the prior week with a trailing four-week addition of one.

Jeff Leblanc, analyst at TPH, said that Enverus data showed horizontal activity climbing by four rigs, clawing back the bulk of the previous week's six-rig drop.

Public operators drove the rebound, adding four rigs to their active count. However, TPH analysts said that the fluctuations point more toward routine data volatility rather than a broader structural shift in upstream spending.

Regionally, activity held steady across three major basins, while the Permian Basin added four rigs and the Niobrara lost three.

TPH analysts forecast modest gains in active rig counts in the coming weeks, buoyed by commentary from major contract drillers Patterson-UTI (PTEN) and Nabors Industries (NBR), both of which indicated expectations for higher corporate activity during recent earnings calls.

Offshore, drilling in the Gulf of Mexico remained unchanged over the week, holding at 15 floating rigs and three jackups currently online.

Rig activity in Canada surged by 15 rigs over the week to reach 217 rigs, outpacing the 176 rigs working during the same period last year.

Price: $10.33, Change: $-0.15, Percent Change: -1.43%

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