North Dakota Rig Count Holds at 34, Up 10 from July

North Dakota's active drilling rig count held steady at 34 on Sunday, with no rigs added, removed, or moved in the past 24 hours, according to live Bakken Wire data. The current count represents a two-rig increase from one week ago and a ten-rig jump from the 24 rigs active one month ago on July 24, 2026.

The stability at a higher level follows a period of significant growth, underscoring increased operator confidence. According to a recent state briefing, the count had reached 33 rigs earlier in the week, up from 26 in mid-July. Nathan Anderson, director of the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources, highlighted the importance of this expansion during an Aug. 20 media briefing, Yahoo Finance reported. "We have seven additional rigs in the basin this month that we didn't have just 30 days ago, and that's important," Anderson said.

The recent rig count increase has been accompanied by the arrival of several new operators in the state. Data from the Department of Mineral Resources shows five rig operators that were new to North Dakota as of August: Eben Operating, Firebird Services, Iron Oil Operating, Murex Petroleum, and Zavanna Energy Operating, Yahoo Finance reported. Each company had one operating rig in the state after having none in July.

The uptick in drilling activity aligns with stronger production and favorable oil prices. State data from June, which lags by two months, showed North Dakota produced an average of 1.153 million barrels of oil per day, a near 2.5% increase from May's 1.125 million barrels per day, according to Yahoo Finance. The North Dakota market oil price for June was $80.56 per barrel, approximately 36.5% above the state's revenue forecast price of $59.

Anderson noted that the production increase was "not a surprise relative to where oil prices are." West Texas Intermediate crude futures were at $86.60 a barrel prior to his Aug. 20 briefing. Break-even prices in North Dakota range from $50-$60 per barrel in WTI prices, depending on the formation and technology used, he has said previously.

The combination of new rigs, new operators, and strong pricing is expected to drive future activity. Anderson stated these factors should help drive oil production, permitting trends, and the number of well completions in the Bakken, Yahoo Finance reported. A completion is the final step in making a drilled well ready to produce.

The sustained rig activity also reflects broader corporate strategies in the basin. While specific plans were not detailed in the provided sources, TXO Partners (NYSE:TXO) recently indicated it is positioning itself as a "production and distribution company" focused on cash distributions while selectively investing in a portfolio that includes the Williston Basin, according to a Yahoo Finance summary from Aug. 21.