Led by growth in oil-directed drilling in the Permian Basin, the U.S. rig count rose three units to 765 for the week ended Friday, according to updated figures published by Baker Hughes Co. (BKR).

rigs

A four-rig increase in oil-directed drilling in the United States was partially offset by a one-rig decrease in natural gas-directed activity. The 765 active U.S. rigs as of Friday compares with 508 rigs running in the year-earlier period, according to the BKR numbers, which are partly based on data from Enverus.

Land drilling increased by three units domestically, while the Gulf of Mexico count was unchanged week/week at 16. Two vertical units were added overall, along with one directional rig.

The Canadian rig count, meanwhile, was flat week/week at 201, versus 147 in the year-ago...