Halliburton To Cut Drilling Costs, Export Shale Technology
10 Novembro 2010 - 9:36PM
Dow Jones News
Halliburton Co. (HAL) executives Wednesday said they would seek
to reduce the number of employees and the amount of time it takes
to drill shale wells in North America, even as they export the
technology to markets outside the U.S.
The second-largest oilfield services company after Schlumberger
Ltd. (SLB) seeks to keep the cost of its drilling services down to
help keep natural-gas drilling active amid a major glut of the
commodity.
At the Houston-based company's annual analyst meeting, David
Adams, vice president of production and enhancement, said the
company will reduce the number of workers needed at each shale
drilling site by 35%. Doing that will in turn allow Halliburton to
reduce costs associated with transporting workers to jobs as well
as cutting down on some of the equipment needed at each site.
Halliburton also plans to trim the time it takes to complete
each onshore well by 25%, Adams said. "That tells us we'll have 25%
more toys to play with and go after new revenue," he said.
Jim Brown, president of the company's Western Hemisphere
division, said that the company expects significant international
growth through the export of shale technology. Recently the company
undertook a hydraulic fracturing job in Argentina and Halliburton
won a contract to drill the first well in Mexico's portion of the
Eagle Ford shale, Brown said.
That rock formation, which stretches into southern Texas and has
been the target of numerous high-profile acquisitions in the U.S.,
is rich in oil and liquid natural gases, which trade at a premium
over dry gas, or methane.
Company officials also said they see potential for shale
drilling jobs in Europe and India.
Meanwhile, the company has forecast rapid growth in its
deep-water drilling activity, particularly in Angola and
Brazil.
Jonathan Lewis, senior vice president of drilling and
evaluation, said Halliburton will beat the industry's growth rate
by 25% over the next three years "irrespective of what that growth
rate maybe."
Chief Financial Officer Mark McCollum said Halliburton will try
to close the gap with its larger rival Schlumberger while becoming
"the lowest cost service provider in the world."
Shares of Halliburton closed up $1.66, or 5%, at $34.88 on
Wednesday, $1.01 off the 52-week high they reached last month after
the company posted third-quarter earnings that doubled from the
prior year.
-By Ryan Dezember, Dow Jones Newswires; 713-547-9208;
ryan.dezember@dowjones.com
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