Weekly Global Offshore Rig Counts 2021

To borrow a medical term, the global jackup rig count during December was unremarkable. The number of units under contract increased by just one rig for the month, with the count in every major region fluctuating by a rig or two every week. The floating rig count, however, increased by three overall for the month, from 110 to 113. While most of the main regions were down by a rig or two, it was the “other areas” that were responsible for the climb, with the number of contracted rigs increasing by seven during the month. This was driven by new contracts starting in the Mediterranean, India, and Far East regions.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 52 as of Monday 27th December, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 51 as of Monday 20th December, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 50 as of Monday 13th December, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 49 as of Monday 6th December, 2021

The number of contracted jackups rose by seven during November, starting the month at 347 and ending at 354. As would be expected, most every major region was either stable or saw an increase for the month. Southeast Asia saw a two-rig uptick, while the North Sea and Middle East counts both increased by a single unit. The global floating rig count also went up, albeit by a more modest amount, going from 111 to 114 contracted units. Southeast Asia again was a large part of the jump, seeing a three-rig increase during the month. A few other areas went either up or down by a rig to end up at the three-rig improvement.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 48 as of Monday 29th November, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 47 as of Monday 22nd November, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 46 as of Monday 15th November, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 45 as of Monday 8th November, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 44 as of Monday 1st November, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 43 as of Monday 25th October, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 42 as of Monday 18th October, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 41 as of Monday 11th October, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 40 as of Monday 4th October, 2021

Global jackup utilization in September was down slightly as rigs in a few different regions, including the Middle East, completed contracts and were released. However, we expect that some of these will return to work shortly, and the count should improve. For floating rigs, the number of contracted units increased by two from the beginning to the end of the month. During October, however, there are semis in some regions scheduled to complete contracts with no follow-up work in place, and we believe the number of contracted units could decline slightly.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 39 as of Monday 27th September, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 38 as of Monday 20th September, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 37 as of Monday 13th September, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 36 as of Monday 6th September, 2021

The global jackup count in the month of August was unchanged, starting and ending the month at 345. Most regions that had any rig count change during the month varied by only one unit. The floating rig count, however, fell by six units from 115 early in the month to 109 on August 31. but only two of the six rigs were released and stacked with no follow-up contracts in place. The remaining four units were idle but preparing for upcoming work and therefore by definition considered as not under contract. Africa and North America each lost two contracted units during the month, the most of any region. However, these counts are expected to increase in September.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 35 as of Monday 30th August, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 34 as of Monday 23rd August, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 33 as of Monday 16th August, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 32 as of Monday 9th August, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 31 as of Monday 2nd August, 2021

The number of worldwide contracted jackups ended July where it started, at 344 units. While the number for the month was unchanged, it still represents over a 20-rig increase since January. Southeast Asia, the North Sea and Mexico have been responsible for the largest overall increases during the year. Like the jackup fleet, the floating rig fleet has seen an increase in the average number of contracted units from January to July. The average 115 contracted units during July is an increase of only one rig from June, but nearly 9% higher than the average 105 contract floating rigs in January. South America, the North Sea Africa and Southeast Asia have all seen increases in the average number of contracted units since the start of 2021.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 29 as of Monday 26th July, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 29 as of Monday 19th July, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 28 as of Monday 12th July, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 27 as of Monday 5th July, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 26 as of Monday 28th June, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 25 as of Monday 21st June, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 24 as of Monday 14th June, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 23 as of Monday 7th June, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 22 as of Monday 31st May, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 21 as of Monday 24th May, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 20 as of Monday 17th May, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 19 as of Monday 10th May, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 18 as of Monday 4th May, 2021

The global jackup rig count increased by a net of four in April, driven mainly by a three-rig gain in Southeast Asia. Activity in the Middle East, the largest jackup market in the world, declined by one during the month. At the end of the month, the number of contracted rigs had increased by seven since the beginning of the year. For floating rigs, the rig count at the end of April was up by six from January, while Africa, Southeast Asia, Europe and South America all saw a one or two-rig increase during April.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 17 as of Monday 26th April, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 16 as of Monday 19th April, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 15 as of Monday 12th April, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 14 as of Monday 5th April, 2021

The global jackup and floating rig counts continued to track upward during March. The number of jackups under contract increased by a net of four units to 329, while floating rig usage, driven mostly by the drillship fleet, rose by three to 111. The North Sea saw three additional units go under contract during the month, while South America accounted for two of the three-rig increase in the floating rig fleet.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 13 as of Monday 29th March, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 12 as of Monday 22nd March, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 11 as of Monday 15th March, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 10 as of Monday 8th March, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 9 as of Monday 1st March, 2021

Jackup count stable; floaters rising. The worldwide jackup rig count in February was down by just two units versus where it began, but it had regained one of those by early March and the count is expected to register a positive gain during the rest of the month. As for floating rigs, the month of February saw a three-rig increase, which was expected. Demand for floating rigs is gaining momentum, and we believe the upward trend will continue in March.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 8 as of Monday 22th February, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 7 as of Monday 15th February, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 6 as of Monday 8th February, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 5 as of Monday 1st February, 2021

Jackup rig demand held steady during the first month of the New Year, as declines in Asia were offset by net gains elsewhere. Floating rig demand fell by four units as more rigs finished contracts, but with 16 non-working, but future committed units preparing to begin contracts, and additional rig tenders on the horizon, demand should recover over the next few months.

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 4 as of Monday 25th January, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 3 as of Monday 18th January, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 2 as of Monday 11th January, 2021

The global offshore rig count for jackup and floating rigs for week 1 as of Monday 4th January, 2021