HOUSTON, June 24 (Xinhua) -- The number of active drilling rigs in the United States increased to 753 this week, up by 13 from the previous week and 283 from last year, according to the weekly data released Friday by Houston-based oilfield services company Baker Hughes.
These active drilling rigs included 594 oil rigs operating in the U.S. oil fields, up by 10 from the previous week; 157 gas drilling rigs, up by three from last week; and two miscellaneous rigs, the same as last week.
The rigs included 734 land drilling rigs, three inland water rigs, and 16 offshore drilling rigs.
Of them, 41 are directional drilling rigs, 685 are horizontal drilling rigs and 27 are vertical drilling rigs.
The Permian Basin in western Texas and eastern New Mexico has been the largest source of shale oil production growth in the United States, having been an engine of supply growth outside the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in the past years.
