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Saudi Aramco to boost oil drilling rig count to 130

Exploration & Production

Saudi Aramco intends to increase the number of drilling rigs it operates to 130 by Q2 of 2012, according to industry sources.

From 130 to 104

The global economic crisis saw Aramco cut its rig count from 130 to 104 due to the fall in demand. The company was expected to keep the level of rigs it operates unchanged from 2010 but following disruptions to Libya's output earlier this year, Saudi Arabia increased output.

For Manifa oil field

Half of all the new drilling rigs will be for Manifa as Aramco expedited plans to bring the 900,000 bpd oil field on line by 2014, reported Reuters.

To increase maintenance

"The number of rigs has increased since we want to increase the maintenance of our fields," said a Saudi industry source. "The rig count is already above 118 now."

The number of rigs Aramco operates fluctuates depending on oil market needs.