HOUSTON, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The number of active drilling rigs in the United States decreased by 21 to 318 this week, down by 665 year on year, according to the weekly data released Friday by Houston-based oilfield services company Baker Hughes.

These active drilling rigs included 237 oil rigs operating in the U.S. oil fields, down by 21 from the previous week; and 79 gas drilling rigs and two miscellaneous rigs, both unchanged from last week.

The 318 rigs included 306 land drilling rigs, down by 21 from the previous week; and 12 offshore drilling rigs, same as the previous week. There was no inland waters drilling rig this week, same as last week.

Of them, 25 are directional drilling rigs, 285 are horizontal drilling rigs, and eight are vertical drilling rigs.

During the week, the number of drilling rigs decreased the most by 12 in the state of Texas to 138 rigs.

By far, the Permian Basin in western Texas and eastern New Mexico has been the largest source of shale oil production growth in the United States, having become an engine of supply growth outside the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries in the past years. Enditem

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