39th annual Reed rig census

Journal Article · Tue Oct 01 00:00:00 EDT 1991 · World Oil; (United States)

OSTI ID:5789049

Crowhurst, M E; Fitts, R L ^[1]

---

1. Reed Tool Co., Houston, TX (US)

This paper reports on cutbacks in U.S. exploration and development drilling during the first half of 1991 which squeezed most of the optimism out of the drilling industry. Just how rough the year has been is underscored by the results of this year's rig census. The number of rotary rigs available for U.S. drilling declined by only 69 units (3%) during the past 12 months. But despite those withdrawals from competition, only 66% of the remaining rigs were working at the time the census was taken. Results of the 1991 census contrasted sharply with the stability and optimism that seemed apparent a year ago when 72% of the available rig fleet met the census definition of active. At that time, the mini-boom in horizontal drilling coupled with tax-credit- driven gas drilling led to a relatively high rig utilization rate and suggested that rig supply and demand might be close to an economically acceptable balance. However, it quickly became apparent in early 1991 that industry optimism was unjustified. Horizontal drilling began to drop and the lowest natural gas prices in 12 years triggered rapid declines in gas drilling. Although oil prices have been relatively stable and above $18 per bbl since January 1989, most major operators have concluded that a better return on investment can be had outside the U.S. and have drastically cut their domestic drilling budgets. These factors, combined with softened energy demand from the worldwide recession, further slowed U.S. drilling. The long awaited balance between rig supply and demand has seemingly slipped away. The 1991 Reed rig census describes an industry facing several more rough years. Details of this year's census include: The available U.S. fleet now stands at 2,251 rigs, down by 69 from the 2,320-unit total in 1990, and the lowest since 1976. Rigs meeting the census definition of active numbered 1,485, down 192 (11.4%) from the 1,677 active rigs counted a year earlier.

• OSTI ID: 5789049
• Journal Information: World Oil; (United States), Vol. 212:10; ISSN 0043-8790
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
03 NATURAL GAS
29 ENERGY PLANNING
POLICY AND ECONOMY
NATURAL GAS
PRICES
OIL WELLS
DIRECTIONAL DRILLING
USA
WELL DRILLING
OPTIMIZATION
DRILLING RIGS
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
HORIZONTAL INTEGRATION
RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
REVIEWS
ROTARY DRILLING
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
DOCUMENT TYPES
DRILLING
ECONOMICS
ENERGY SOURCES
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
NORTH AMERICA
WELLS
020700* - Petroleum- Economics
Industrial
& Business Aspects
030600 - Natural Gas- Economic
Industrial
& Business Aspects
294002 - Energy Planning & Policy- Petroleum
294003 - Energy Planning & Policy- Natural Gas