March 5, 2010

The worldwide count of offshore rigs under contract increased by three this week and now stands at 586, according to ODS-Petrodata's Weekly Mobile Offshore Rig Count. In addition, a new deepwater drillship joined the offshore drilling fleet, pushing the fleet size to 754 rigs. Worldwide offshore rig fleet utilization this week is 77.7 percent.

One rig has returned to the U.S. Gulf from Mexican waters, and the U.S. Gulf offshore drilling fleet is now comprised of 122 rigs. Of these, 76 are under contract, a two rig increase over last week and a four-rig increase compared to one month ago. Offshore rig fleet utilization in the area is now 62.3 percent.

The South America offshore rig count is unchanged from last week With 88 of the 115 offshore drilling units in the region under contract, South American offshore rig fleet utilization is 76.5 percent.

The offshore rig count is also unchanged in Europe. This week, 88 of 115 mobile offshore drilling rigs in the area are under contract and the region's fleet utilization rate is 87.4 percent.

The Middle East offshore rig count declined by one rig this week and now stands at 92. Fleet size is unchanged at 119 rigs, and fleet utilization is now 77.3 percent.

The Asia/Australia contracted rig count increased by four rigs since last week to 102. Fleet size increased by one with the delivery of the new drillship from a shipyard in the region. Offshore rig fleet utilization in the region has risen to 82.3 percent.