Articles tagged Rigs

The U.S. natural gas rig count eased one unit lower to 105 for the week ended Friday (April 26), while a decline of five oil-directed rigs dropped the combined domestic tally six units week/week to 613, according to updated numbers from Baker Hughes Co. (BKR).

The timing for the next leg of growth in North America remains uncertain, but there’s “no question” that natural gas output will drive the market into 2025 and beyond because of LNG exports and rising electricity demand, Halliburton Co. CEO Jeff Miller said.

Geopolitical tensions are impacting global oil and natural gas prices, but the outlook for oilfield services “continues to be constructive,” as operators prepare for infrastructure and LNG projects to begin commercial operations, according to Ensign Energy Services Inc.

Permian Basin-focused ProPetro Holding Corp. is giving its exploration customers more of what they want – electric and dual-fuel fleets – as it continues to industrialize its business, CEO Sam Sledge said.

• Search for bottom continuing for natural gas futures Wednesday as prices down sharply through morning and lunchtime trading
• March Nymex contract off 8.0 cents to $1.609/MMBtu as of 2:28 p.m. ET; $1.61 seen as “strong technical support,” according to EBW Analytics Group’s Eli Rubin
• Nymex front month trading at roughly 10-cent premium to day-ahead Henry Hub price of $1.510, according to NGI’s Midday Price Alert
• Market searching for signs of a production response as major natural gas operators report earnings
• Including hedges, EQT Corp. estimating Nymex Henry Hub free cash flow breakeven of around $2.20/MMBtu in 2024, per 4Q2023 results
• Gelber & Associates: “Given EQT’s status as the largest natural gas producer in the Lower 48, that breakeven price could serve broadly as a good baseline for understanding at what point producers are incentivized to moderate output, especially those outside the Permian”
• Haynesville Shale pure-play Comstock Resources Inc. dropping from seven to five rigs in response to weak prices, reports NGI’s Andrew Baker
• Haynesville rig count down three for week ended Feb. 9, Marcellus and Utica shales down a combined five rigs: Enverus
• Spot prices mostly lower, per Midday Price Alert, with National Avg. off 24.0 cents to $1.655; Northeast Regional Avg. plummets $1.560 to $2.600
• Following Nor’easter impacting Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, National Weather Service expecting “much more tranquil weather” for these areas the next few days

Haynesville Shale pure-play Comstock Resources Inc. is pumping the brakes on natural gas drilling and shareholder distributions because of low commodity prices.

Canadian energy market fundamentals are improving enough to support a “sustained period of elevated natural gas drilling,” particularly in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, Precision Drilling Corp.’s chief said.

Led by gains in both the Haynesville and Marcellus shales, the U.S. natural gas rig count advanced to 121 for the week ended Friday (Feb. 9), up four rigs for the period, according to the latest tally from Baker Hughes Co. (BKR).

The U.S. natural gas rig count dropped two units to 117 for the week ended Friday (Feb. 2), including a slowdown in the Haynesville Shale, updated Baker Hughes Co. (BKR) data show.

Drilling permits in the natural gas-rich Marcellus, Utica and Haynesville shale plays showed strong month/month growth in December 2023 but remained 16% below the December 2022 total, according to the latest tally by Evercore ISI.