Those oil and gas rig counts issued on Fridays by Houston-based Baker Hughes Company can sometimes be confusing. Take for instance the case of the firm’s report that the rig count in Kansas is zero, same as it was last week.
However, another listing of rig activity indicates Kansas has at least 31 active rigs. The Independent Oil and Gas Service Inc. of Wichita, in its daily “Red Top” report indicated the Sept. 15 count showed 31 active rigs with another 34 rigs awaiting the next location assignment. It also indicated there were 164 inactive rigs in Kansas compared to 120 a year ago. Last week, Kansas had 28 active rigs.
In short, the weekly report by Baker Hughes is based on rigs that it services. Still, the media tends to take its report as gospel.