Canadian Drilling – Oil Rig Counts Sink Further as Spring Break Up Takes Full Hold

For the week ending March 21, Baker Hughes reported that the Western Canadian gas-directed rig count rose one to 61 (blue line and text in left hand chart below), 17 less than one year ago and little changed in the past three weeks. The oil-directed rig count sank 21 to 116 (red line and text in right hand chart), and 25 more than a year ago. The additional large pullback in the oil rig count is consistent with the time of year known as spring break up, when drilling and rig movement activity is reduced due to restrictions on the movement of heavy equipment in some regions as a result of thawing of ground conditions. Weather in Western Canada has been mild, with the first three weeks of March in northeast British Columbia (BC) being 6% warmer than the 30-year average, while conditions in northwest Alberta have been 12% warmer than the 30-year average.