Offshore staff
ASKER, Norway -- TGS-NOPEC Geophysical Co. (TGS) has agreed to acquire Stingray Geophysical.
TGS says the transaction should strengthen its position in the growing market for permanent reservoir monitoring (PRM) solutions. Robert Hobbs, CEO of TGS said: "The age of 'easy to find’ oil is over, forcing oil companies to increase investment in their existing fields to extend production and increase recovery factors.
“The acquisition of Stingray allows TGS to access a larger portion of the reservoir optimization market.”
Over the next four years, Stingray expects 4D seismic expenditure, including PRM, to exceed $2.5 billion. New PRM installations will likely trend towards optical versus electrical solutions, due to the reliability and flexibility the technology is said to offer, especially in deepwater.
TGS expects to pay up to $80 million eventually for Stingray, depending on its success in commercializing the PRM technology.
Stingray, founded in March 2006, is based in Guildford, UK. According to TGS, the company has unique and patented fiber-optic sensing technology for seismic PRM and other oil and gas applications. The basis for the fiber-optic sensing system was originally developed in the 1980s for anti-submarine defense applications.
Stingray has been backed by a consortium led by venture-capitalist groups Energy Ventures, Chevron Technology Ventures, Energy Capital Management/Statoil Venture, and Cody Gate Ventures.
04/11/2011
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