Producing oil wells tick down as price begins to hit

Estimated U.S. wells producing oil at the end of 2015

The total number of active, producing oil wells in the U.S. dropped slightly during 2015, a trend that looks set to sharpen this year, as the oil price decline begins to exact its toll on the industry. According to World Oil’s forecast data, the total number of active oil wells declined to 594,436 from 597,281, a 0.5% decline.

South. The nation’s top oil-producing state, Texas, bucked the overall trend and reported a slight increase in the number of active oil wells last year. According to data provided by the Railroad Commission of Texas, the Lone Star state gained 3,706 producing wells, which equates to an increase of 2%.

Louisiana reported a slight decline in producing wells last year, from 19,853 to 19,381. Alabama, which saw one of the nation’s biggest declines on a percentage basis, reported 1,005 active wells.

Mid-Continent. The second-highest number of producing oil wells is in Oklahoma, which experienced a 2.6% increase last year, with 93,610 active wells. North Dakota closed out 2015 with 13,420 active oil wells, which would represent an increase of more than 14%, the largest increase, on a percentage basis, of any state. Meanwhile, Kentucky experienced the nation’s biggest decline, registering a 23.2% reduction. Some of these wells may be shut in, due to low prices. Kansas reported 1,580 additional wells this year, for a new total of 55,025.

West/Rockies. The number of active wells dropped below 50,000 in California last year, as the state reported a 10.6% decline. At year-end, the state had 48,425 active oil wells, the vast majority of which—some 46,355 wells—were utilizing artificial lift. Colorado reported a 2.7% drop last year, with the state reporting 14,852 wells at year-end.

East. A moderate increase in the number of active wells occurred in Pennsylvania. At year-end, the state accounted for 21,940 active oil wells, which represents 387 additional wells.

Federal waters. The number of active oil wells in federal waters held steady last year. The Pacific region declined slightly, with federal agency BSEE reporting 39 fewer wells. Meanwhile, the Gulf of Mexico proved more resilient, with the agency reporting the addition of 40 new wells, for a total net change of one additional well.