The offshore drilling market has not changed much over the last month with small but somewhat positive results. The total number of jackups, semis, and drillships under contract grew by two units from 466 units in July to 468 in August. Meanwhile, the global fleet had a four-unit increase over that period, with total supply now at 764 rigs. As a result, utilization has taken a bit of a hit, falling from 61.4% in July to 61.2% in August. At the same time, the number of rigs working has experienced a decent increase of five units recently, rising from 438 in July to 443 in August.
– Justin Smith, Petrodata by IHS Markit