Canada's Drilling Year: From Summer Trough to Winter Peak and Back

A full year of Baker Hughes rig count data reveals a dramatic cycle of surge, peak, spring break, and recovery. Here's what the numbers say about where Canada drilled and where it's heading.

Key Findings at a Glance

Period average: 175 rigs per week

Peak: 232 rigs on January 30, 2026 (winter high)

Trough: 101 rigs on December 30, 2025 (holiday low)

Year-over-year growth: +38% (June 2026 vs June 2025)

The biggest single-week rise: +96 rigs into January 9, 2026 - the January restart.

The biggest single-week drop: -67 rigs into December 24, 2025 - Christmas.

Weekly Rig Count Trend

Weekly Canadian Rig Count (June 2025 – June 2026)

Canadian drilling activity opened the 12-month period at just 114 rigs on June 6, 2025 — a typical mid-year dip as spring breakup fades and summer programs ramp up. Activity climbed steadily through summer and fall, surged sharply after the holiday lull, peaked at 232 rigs on January 30, 2026, then fell through spring breakup before staging a strong recovery to 197 rigs on June 26, 2026.

Monthly Seasonality

Monthly Average Rig Count

The winter drilling window (January–February 2026) averaged over 221 rigs per week. Spring breakup in April–May dragged averages back to the mid-130s. The June 2026 recovery to 183 rigs is notably strong—matching August 2025 mid-summer momentum rather than a typical post-breakup crawl.

Where the Rigs Are: Provincial Breakdown

Weekly Rig Count by Province

Alberta anchors the patch, holding approximately 74% of all Canadian rig activity and averaging 130 rigs per week.

Saskatchewan's 16% share and a +19-rig year-over-year swing makes it the fastest-growing region, averaging 28 rigs per week.

British Columbia averaged 13 rigs per week, concentrated in Northern BC's Montney gas fairway.

Manitoba and NL Offshore together account for under 2.5% combined activity.

Oil vs Gas Drilling Activity

Oil vs Gas Directed Rig Count

Oil-directed drilling held a consistent two-thirds share, averaging 116 rigs per week versus 59 for gas.

Oil's year-over-year gain of +68 rigs was more than five times gas's +13-rig increase, reflecting strong capital deployment in oil sands-adjacent plays and multi-zone development in the Montney oil window.

Drilling Technology Mix

Rig Trajectory Mix (Full Period)

Canada's rig mix tells a modernization story. Horizontal drilling accounted for 92.6% of all rig-weeks—among the highest ratios in North America.

Vertical and directional rigs split the remaining 7.3% evenly at roughly 3.6–3.7% each. This matters for productivity: horizontal wells in multi-zone unconventional plays deliver dramatically more production per rig than conventional vertical completions.

Top 10 Drilling Sub-Areas

Average Weekly Rig Count by Sub-Area

The Foothills Front in Alberta led all sub-areas at 50.8 rigs per week — nearly 30% of the entire country's activity on its own. Northeastern Alberta followed at 39.1, anchored by oil sands-adjacent plays.

What This Means for Field Teams in 2026

Canada's drilling activity is tracking meaningfully ahead of mid-2025 levels. June 2026 averaged 183 rigs — 38% above the same month a year prior.

The seasonal shape is unchanged (summer build → winter peak → spring break → summer recovery), but the "floor is higher".

For oilfield services companies, consultants, and field personnel, that means more active programs to track, more locations in the field, and more pressure on navigation tools that work offline and deep in the patch.

Whether you're following rigs in the Foothills Front, chasing work in Saskatchewan, or monitoring BC's Montney gas plays, knowing where active rigs are — in real time is essential.

Real-Time Rig Tracking Beyond the Reports

Historical rig counts tell the story of what happened. But field teams need to know what's happening right now — which rigs are active this week, where they're drilling, and how to navigate to them.

Rig Finder provides access to live rig locations, well data, and navigation tools that work deep in the patch. Track drilling activity across Alberta, Saskatchewan, and BC in real time.

Your field team deserves tools built for the realities of oilfield work. Join thousands of contractors, consultants, and operators who rely on Rig Finder for accurate, immediate rig intelligence.