Baker Hughes Incorporated announced that the international rig count for March 2012 was 1,192, down 12 from the 1,204 counted in February 2012, and up 45 from the 1,147 counted in March 2011. The international offshore rig count for March 2012 was 303, down 17 from the 320 counted in February 2012 and up 8 from the 295 counted in March 2011.
The average U.S. rig count for March 2012 was 1,979, down 11 from the 1,990 counted in February 2012 and up 259 from the 1,720 counted in March 2011. The average Canadian rig count for March 2012 was 492, down 214 from the 706 counted in February 2012 and down 75 from the 567 counted in March 2011.
The worldwide rig count for March 2012 was 3,663, down 237 from the 3,900 counted in February 2012 and up 229 from the 3,434 counted in March 2011.
The Baker Hughes Rotary Rig Counts are counts of the number of drilling rigs actively exploring for or developing oil or natural gas in the United States, Canada and international markets. Baker Hughes has issued the rotary rig counts as a service to the petroleum industry since 1944, when Hughes Tool Company began weekly counts of US and Canadian drilling activity. Baker Hughes initiated the monthly international rig count in 1975.
[mappress] Source: Baker Hughes, April 9, 2012