The number of active rigs in the Barnett Shale rose by five this week to 35, apparently a rebound from last week, when the total was probably depressed by ice and snow that blew in during Christmas week.

That week, the count fell by eight to 30, according to RigData. Still, the Barnett rig count remains at its lowest level in years.

Nationally, the count inched down by one to 1,762. Oil rigs dropped by nine to 1,318, their lowest in nine months, BakerHughes said.

Gas rigs were up eight to 439 but remain at less than a third of their peak in 2008. While oil rigs have fallen for seven straight weeks, U.S. oil production rose to its highest since March 1993.