Jan 12, 2026
U.S. drilling activity is sending a clear signal as 2026 gets underway: capital discipline is tightening and operators are becoming far more selective about where they deploy rigs. The latest Baker Hughes rig count shows another weekly decline, extending a trend that has been building for months as oil-weighted drilling programs are pared back while natural gas activity holds steady. This shift is reshaping where rigs are working, how service companies compete for work, and which basins will attract investment in the year ahead.
🇺🇸 U.S. Rig Count – Week Ending Jan 11, 2026
Headline: U.S. drilling activity continues to soften. The U.S. rig count fell by two this week to 544 active rigs in the Baker Hughes report dated January 11, 2026, remaining 40 rigs below last year’s level.
Category This Week Last Week 1 Year Ago Weekly Change YoY Change Total Rigs 544 546 584 -2 -40 Oil 409 412 480 -3 -71 Gas 124 125 100 -1 +24 Misc 11 9 4 +2 +7 Offshore 16 16 n/a 0 —
This is not a random fluctuation — it reflects a structural pullback in oil drilling while gas drilling remains elevated.
🛢 Oil Is Being Cut — Gas Is Being Protected
Oil rigs are down 71 rigs year-over-year (-15%), while gas rigs are up 24 (+24%).
That tells you exactly where capital is flowing:
Capital Is Moving Toward Capital Is Moving Away From LNG-linked gas basins Oil-weighted shale Haynesville, Marcellus, Utica Permian fringe acreage Power generation supply Growth-at-any-cost drilling
Operators are protecting gas-linked, long-cycle contracts while trimming short-cycle oil programs in a sub-$60 WTI environment.
🧭 Basin-Level Signals
This week’s state data reinforces the same story:
🛢 Oil Basins Weakening
| State | Rigs | Weekly Change | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 231 | -1 | -52 |
| New Mexico | 100 | -1 | — |
| North Dakota (Bakken) | 26 | -1 | — |
| Wyoming | 15 | -1 | — |
| Louisiana | 40 | -3 | — |
These are all oil-heavy basins or oil-weighted drilling provinces.
🔥 Gas-Oriented Areas Are Holding or Growing
| State | Rigs | Weekly Change |
|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 18 | Flat |
| Ohio | 14 | Flat |
| West Virginia | 7 | Flat |
| Utah | 17 | +4 |
Utah’s surge is especially important — much of that is gas-weighted Rockies drilling feeding western utilities and LNG pipelines.
Why This Matters for Service & Equipment Sales
This is no longer a “cyclical dip.”
It’s a portfolio re-allocation.
Oilfield services tied to:
- Permian frac spreads
- Midland/Bakken drilling
- Short-cycle shale
are facing:
Fewer rigs, shorter programs, tighter AFE approval
Meanwhile, gas-linked operators are:
- Locking in multi-year LNG supply
- Building power-generation supply chains
- Funding midstream-connected drilling
That means:
The money is moving toward gas-anchored drilling programs with infrastructure behind them.
What Your Sales Strategy Should Do Right Now
This rig report tells you exactly where to aim:
Shift away from
- Permian fringe operators
- Bakken drilling contractors
- Short-cycle oil programs
Shift toward
- Haynesville
- Marcellus / Utica
- Rockies gas
- LNG-linked operators
- Power-generation supply chains
These programs don’t stop just because WTI drops $5.
They are backed by:
- LNG offtake contracts
- Power-plant demand
- Pipeline commitments
Which means budget certainty for service providers.
Bottom Line
The U.S. rig count didn’t just dip — it sent a capital-allocation signal:
Oil is being rationed. Gas is being protected.
If you’re selling rigs, frac, logistics, chemicals, water, or drilling tech in 2026, the winners won’t be chasing oil barrels — they’ll be feeding gas molecules into power plants and LNG terminals.
