By Alison Sider
Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) Chief Executive Paal Kibsgaard said
during a conference call Friday that the company is expecting its
international operations to continue to grow, despite macroeconomic
uncertainty.
"In the international market we have seen no material change to
overall customer activity plans or sentiments during the quarter,
and we still expect our activity to grow in excess of 10% this
year," the oilfield services company's chief executive said. "We
maintain a positive view of the international market," he later
added.
Mr. Kibsgaard said China shows signs of slowing economic growth,
but "so far, the slow down appears to be actively managed, and for
the time being, kept under control." He said demand for
Schlumberger's land drilling services has grown from the second
quarter there.
Schlumberger is less optimistic about its prospects in North
America, where rig counts are on the decline and prices for
hydraulic fracturing services have been squeezed.
"In North America, the activity sentiments are currently more
negative, both in Canada and U.S. land, with liquids activity no
longer able to offset the drop in dry gas drilling," Mr. Kibsgaard
said.
But the Gulf of Mexico is a bright spot for North America, and
Mr. Kibsgaard said the rig count is on track to reach pre-Deepwater
Horizon levels by the end of the year.
"There's a lot of positive sentiments around the outlook for the
Gulf of Mexico. Drilling rigs continue to rise."
-Write to Alison Sider at alison.sider@dowjones.com
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