North Dakota active rigs rise to 39 on Mountrail relocation

North Dakota's active rig count stood at 39 on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, according to Bakken Wire live rig data. The count was unchanged from the prior day, with no new rigs added and no rigs removed from the active list. One rig did move, however, underscoring continued operational activity in the Williston Basin.

The relocated rig was the NABORS B26, listed under Oasis Petroleum North America LLC, which moved to location 158-92-33 in Mountrail County, the data show. Because a move changes a rig's location but not the statewide total, the active count remained flat on the day even as operations continued.

Mountrail County is a core Bakken drilling area, and the relocation indicates continued use of active drilling equipment in an established part of the Williston Basin. Rig moves can affect local service demand, crew logistics and permit activity without changing the total number of rigs counted as active in North Dakota.

The weekly and monthly rig trend remained positive. A week earlier, on Oct. 28, North Dakota had 38 active rigs, meaning the current count is up one rig over seven days. A month earlier, on Oct. 5, the state had 35 active rigs, showing a four-rig increase over the past 30 days.

That progression suggests a gradual expansion in drilling activity rather than a sharp surge. The day-over-day rig count was flat, but the monthly gain indicates that more rigs have entered the active count than have left during the period. The 39-rig total is the highest of the three data points provided for the past month.

Rig counts are closely watched because they provide an early signal of future well development in the Bakken. Higher active rig counts can lead to more wells drilled, completed and brought online over time, though the current data do not specify operator plans, well categories or completion timelines.

Royalty owners and service companies often track these movements for clues about where activity is concentrated. The single relocation to Mountrail County shows that at least one operator is shifting equipment within a major drilling county, while the broader state count remains stable for the day.

Operators typically evaluate rig relocations based on permits, lease obligations, well inventory and field logistics, though the provided data did not identify the reasons for the move. For a daily report, the key takeaway is stability in the aggregate count and continued movement at the individual rig level.

The live data did not include additional news-source context on operator plans, production levels or drilling programs. For now, the picture is one of steady day-to-day activity with a modest upward trend over the month, anchored by continued operations in the Bakken and Williston Basin.