With 119 active drilling rigs as of June 1, it would appear that the annual late-spring/early-summer recovery in Canadian rig activity has already begun. After dropping rapidly in March and flatlining through April and much of May as per the seasonal pattern, increased rig counts are hinting that the spring thaw may have reached its end. From a YTD low of 77 active rigs on May 9, the 119 active rigs observed today are the most we’ve seen since April 5. The same holds for weekly average active drilling rig counts. Saskatchewan rig activity has seen a particularly marked increase this month; the province accounts for 17.9% of active rigs today, compared to just over 1% on May 1.
Of the 119 rigs active on June 1, 70 are for oil, 44 are for natural gas, and 5 are for other substances.
Drilling rig fleet utilization rates are also on the rise after slumping through April and May. As of today, 32.3% of the available rigs are currently either drilling or on the move. This is a significant increase from last week, when the rate was 24.1%.
For a closer look at this data, visit our rig count tool with data provided by the CAOEC.