• 2018 : Nouveaux défis
• Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) has decided to exit the land and marine seismic acquisition business, which has been battered by the downturn and faces an uncertain future.
  
  The business segment is the Houston-based company’s only product line that fails to meet future return expectations, according to Schlumberger CEO Paal Kibsgaard.
  
  “This has not been an easy decision to make. But following a careful evaluation of the current market trend, our customers’ buying habits and our current and projected financial return, it is an unfortunate and inevitable outcome,” Kibsgaard said during the company’s earnings call on Jan. 19.
  
  The exploration business was especially hit hard when global oversupply and unmatched demand combined to send oil prices down, causing oil and gas companies to cut back spending and halt projects. Exploration, for the most part, took a backseat to drilling and producing resources with fast turnaround times—U.S. shale plays—as operators looked to quickly reap gains in commodity prices.
  
  Exploration investment is expected to remain suppressed and exploration budgets tight in 2018 despite a brighter price outlook, Wood Mackenzie said earlier this month. “Exploration’s share of upstream investment has slipped to below 10% since 2016 and is not about to recover,” the analyst firm said.
  
  Schlumberger’s marine and land seismic acquisition services are offered through WesternGeco, which is part of the company’s reservoir characterization group. The group reported revenue of $1.6 billion for fourth-quarter 2017, down 8% sequentially and down 2% from a year ago.
  
  The oilfield service company highlighted the strength of the group’s Integrated Services Management operations, contract awards and new technology deployments for the quarter. However, that was not enough to help solidify the land and marine seismic acquisition business’ place within the company.

Extrait  EPMag