After a couple consecutive months of healthy growth, the offshore drilling market has returned to being nearly flat. The total number of jackups, semis, and drillships under contract grew by three units from 463 units in June to 466 in July. Meanwhile, the global fleet had a one-unit increase over that period, with total supply now at 760 rigs. As a result, utilization has seen a small improvement from 61.1% in June to 61.4% in July. At the same time, the number of rigs working has also experienced a modest increase of three units recently, rising from 435 in June to 438 in July.
– Justin Smith, Petrodata by IHS Markit
