Oil Explorers Lift Rig Count to 800 for First Time Since 2015
- Record supplies from American fields no deterrant to drillers
- Concerns about potential oversupply have weighed on prices
Photographer: Tim Rue/Bloomberg
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U.S. oil explorers raised the rig count to 800 for the first time in almost three years amid booming domestic and overseas demand for crude and petroleum-based fuels.
Drillers have been accelerating exploration in an almost-unbroken streak since the beginning of November, vaulting American crude output to a record of more than 10 million barrels a day. The unrelenting pace of expansion signals even bigger production jumps yet to come, even as concerns about excess supplies recently weighed on oil prices.