Seismic changes in the energy sector
Jinfo Blog

By Joanna Ptolomey

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In December 2010 Barclays Capital was forecasting an 11% rise in spending in the energy sector jumping to $490 billion in 2011.  Worth a note too was the associated growth in spending and the demand too for the big energy service companies such as Schlumberger, Halliburton and Baker Hughes in North America.

These energy service companies acquire and process seismic data for clients from major oil and gas companies and independent oil and gas operators, and they can also be providers of data libraries.

The North American market is continuing to grow with continued demand for advanced seismic services not just in the lower 48 states but in Canada too, where it is growing at a similar rate.  The smaller niche information providers are now feeling the effects too with consolidation of providers expected to add to competition.

The news that fuels this trend is that the seismic data services provider Dawson Geophysical is acquiring smaller rival TGC for $157 million – specifically in order to expand into the Canadian market.  The feeling is that this will lead to further consolidation from the smaller niche oilfield services looking for some of that spend by the oil and gas companies.

Dawson Geophysical are service providers of 2D, 3D and multi-component land seismic data in the gas and oil sector.  They also produce multi-client data libraries.

Baker Hughes and Schlumberger are seen as the big boy rivals most likely to attract the spending.  But the analysts are suggesting that we could see some of the smaller companies like Geokinetics, ION Geophysical, Dawson and TGC consolidating even more to get a better slice of the cake.

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