Source: RADAR | April 6, 2016

Gas prices have rebounded in 2017, yet they remain well below annualized levels for 2013 and 2014. But in comparing first quarters, it’s noteworthy that gas rigs have rebounded strongly—nearly double the count that 1Q 2016 averaged; there has also been an uptick in permits in unconventional gas plays. The biggest gains in absolute terms in permits have been in the Haynesville Shale and Green River Basin tight sands, both plays where gas rig counts were also up strongly YOY in the first quarter of this year, according to Platts RigData’s RADAR Report.

​

Platts RigData’s News & Analysis team doesn’t see natural gas prices at a level now that alone would spark widespread drilling for natural gas per se. Instead, what we’re seeing is the impact of how certain operators have come up the learning curve in certain plays and found ways to economically and profitably drill wells in them even though gas prices are still nowhere near where they were at the height of the drilling boom.

​

Call 1-800-627-9785 to subscribe to Platts RigData’s RADAR Report, the leading statistical monitor of overall land rig market activity and drilling trends by region, play, operator, driller, and many other proprietary metrics.

​