National Oilwell Varco News

Slater joins WFS Technologies as Sales Manager

WFS Technology Ltd. has appointed Graeme Slater as Sales Manager for the U.K., Australia and Southeast Asia. He is based in Aberdeen. Since joining WFS in March, Slater has been supporting the company’s U.K. and international customers in its use of Seatooth-enabled products to increase production and reduce costs. Prior to joining WFS Slater spent 13 years at Schlumberger in domestic and international managerial positions as the main point of contact. Before Schlumberger, he worked in engineering roles for National Oilwell Varco and Wood Group Engineering.

National Oilwell Varco Slashes Norway Staff Again

U.S. oilfield equipment maker and service provider National Oilwell Varco Inc will cut its Norwegian workforce by another 520 people after low oil prices resulted in fewer orders, the company said in a statement on Friday. The latest round of cuts will reduce the company's staff in Norway to less than 2,000, down from almost 5,000 at the height of the oil industry's boom two years ago. "The uncertain market situation means that we cannot say how extensive the downsizing process will be in the long run," NOV said. The cuts announced on Friday were all permanent jobs, the company added.

National Oilwell Varco Slashes 900 Norwegian Jobs

U.S. oilfield equipment maker National Oilwell Varco Inc will cut its Norwegian workforce by another 900 people after low oil prices resulted in fewer orders, the company said on Monday. The layoffs come on top of cuts announced in June when the company said it would cut 900 permanent jobs and 600 contractors from its Norwegian workforce by the end of this year. The cuts announced on Monday were all permanent jobs, the company said in a statement. Following the latest round, National Oilwell Varco will have laid off about half of its staff in Norway. Reporting by Terje Solsvik

National Oilwell Varco to Cut 1,500 Norwegian Jobs

National Oilwell Varco Inc., the largest U.S. oilfield equipment maker, said it will cut its Norwegian workforce by 1,500 by the end of this year as low oil prices have reduced investments. It plans to cut 900 permanent jobs and 600 contractors, the firm said in a statement on Wednesday. "The reason for the lay-offs is the big change in the market situation for our industry over the last year with reduced investments and reduced sale of new equipment," it said. "The uncertain…

Transocean Appoints Jeremy D. Thigpen President & CEO

The CFO of Houston-based National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV) is stepping down to become CEO of Transocean Ltd. (RIG), one of NOV’s largest customers. Effective April 22, Jeremy Thigpen will become CEO of Switzerland-based Transocean, which has its main U.S. office in Houston. Thigpen succeeds Ian Strachan, who had been serving as interim CEO since Steven Newman stepped down in February. Strachan, who is also the company's Chairman of the Board of Directors, will retire from the Board at the end of his term at the 2015 Annual General Meeting following approximately 16 years of service.

Express Energy Services Names Reese Chairman

Oilfield services company Express Energy Services has appointed Mark Reese as Chairman of the Board of Directors of ES Platform Holdings, Inc., the parent company of Express.    Reese spent more than 30 years at National Oilwell Varco (NOV) before retiring from the company as President - Rig Technology. He held a variety of executive positions in oil and gas operations and maintenance while at NOV, including President of Mission Products Group and President of Expendable Products.

Jacob Recognized as IADC Contractor of the Year

On November 14, 2014, at the International Association of Drilling Contractors’ (IADC) annual general meeting in New Orleans, Ed S. Jacob, III was elected chairman of the IADC by its board of directors. In addition, in recognition of his career and significant industry contributions, Jacob was recognized at the general meeting with the 2014 Contractor of the Year Award. The annual Contractor of the Year Award was established in 1988 to recognize an individual drilling contractor’s outstanding lifetime achievements in technical innovation…

Merger Talks Feed Energy Sector Deal Speculation

Talks that could lead to oilfield services provider Halliburton Co buying rival Baker Hughes Inc may herald increased deal-making in the energy business as companies bet on a protracted drop in oil prices, industry bankers said. Competing service companies including National Oilwell Varco Inc and Weatherford International may also be targets, bankers and lawyers said. In any deal, the incentives will be the same: consolidation would allow them to better weather the downturn and resist pressure from oil producers to slash prices.

Transocean to Appoint Miller to Board

Transocean Ltd. Assuming Miller is elected by shareholders at the EGM, the board intends to designate him as Vice Chairman. Transocean explained that Ian C. Strachan, the current Chairman of the Board, will reach 72 years of age before the 2015 Annual General Meeting (AGM). In accordance with the company's Corporate Governance Guidelines, it is anticipated thathe will retire from the board at the end of his term at the 2015 AGM. The board currently expects to recommend that shareholders elect Miller in his place as Chairman at the 2015 AGM.

Fan Named Enteq Upstream Sales Manager

Enteq Upstream PLC (Enteq), a provider of systems and components for Measurement While Drilling (MWD) and directional drilling, has appointed CS Fan as China and South East Asia (SEA) sales manager, announced Martin Perry, Enteq’s chief executive officer. Based in Dongying, China, near the Shengli Oilfield, Fan’s responsibilities include developing the company’s logistics and support infrastructure, while expanding Enteq’s growth throughout the Far East. Fan brings thirty years’ experience to Enteq and has held various positions supporting and marketing downhole technologies at Baker Hughes…

VBR Names McCreary Sales Manager

Variable Bore Rams, Inc. (VBR), a global original equipment manufacturers (OEM) of blowout preventer components and ram provider, has named Cameron McCreary as sales account manager, announced President Hines M. "Chip" Marshall, Jr. Based in San Antonio, TX, McCreary will be responsible for expanding sales and revenue in the west and south Texas regions. He will establish productive, professional relationships with key personnel within his accounts while cultivating existing company relationships. McCreary’s role also requires management of tickets and invoices within his area.

Eastern Shipbuilding Delivers HARVEY DEEP-SEA

Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. announced the delivery of the M/V HARVEY DEEP-SEA, the fourth of its Tiger Shark Class Offshore Support Vessels constructed for Harvey Gulf International Marine, LLC of New Orleans, LA. The HARVEY DEEP-SEA was delivered July 19, 2013. The vessel was launched at Eastern’s Allanton Facility in mid-December of last year. The HARVEY DEEP-SEA is Eastern’s second Multi-Purpose Light Construction Vessel (LCV) for Harvey Gulf. Eastern Shipbuilding Group has now constructed 11 vessels for Harvey Gulf since 2002.

Petrobas CEO to Deliver Keynote Address at Nor-Shipping 2013

Petrobras CEO, Maria das Graças Silva Foster – named one of the world’s 100 most influential people by Time magazine in 2012 – will be a keynote speaker for the New Frontiers roundtable at Nor-Shipping’s Agenda Offshore conference on June 5. Foster will be joined by top executives from two other world-leading oil and gas companies. Statoil CEO Helge Lund and Royal Dutch Shell Upstream International Director Andy Brown will speak at the event, the second time Nor-Shipping hosts a conference connecting the offshore industry and the maritime industry.

What’s Next?

The maritime industry goes from cycle to cycle, living with and by uncertainty. You could even say that our industry embraces risk. This means that “What’s next?” is always a relevant question – and one that gets some interesting responses. During Nor-Shipping 2011, we discovered that the “what’s next” question really resonates with the industry when we used it to support the theme “Next Generation Shipping” for the event week. The standing-room only audience at the Nor-Shipping…

BRAZIL: U.S. Find New Opportunities

While the U.S. economy may be in the doldrums, smart U.S. companies are looking increasingly to exports to help their bottom lines. A major market for U.S. exports is Brazil. This article examines new market opportunities in the oil and gas, shipbuilding and port infrastructure in Brazil, and identifies certain financing sources available to U.S. companies seeking to participate in these markets. Brazil’s growth in recent years has been amazing. Over the past 5 years, real GDP growth in Brazil has averaged 4.3% annually (as compared to 1.3% annually in the U.S.), reaching 7.5% in 2010.

BW Offshore: The Most Advanced FPSOs in Brazil

The abundance of deepwater O&G prospects, combined with the lack of oil transportation infrastructure in Brazil, has increasingly favored FPSOs as a production solution. Petrobras presently has more than 25 FPSOs in operation and this number is expected to double during the next decade. BW Offshore is a leader in FPSOs and FPSO operations. Although it has been quoting for jobs in Brazil for some years, the company finally established a local office in 2008. BW Offshore currently…

Transocean Ultra-Deepwater Drillship Contract

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) announced that the newbuild ultra-deepwater drillship Dhirubhai Deepwater KG2, which is owned by a joint venture with Pacific Drilling Limited, has commenced operations for Reliance Industries in India under a five-year drilling contract. The dynamically positioned Dhirubhai Deepwater KG2, one of 24 Ultra-Deepwater Floaters in the Transocean fleet, includes the most advanced drilling capabilities in the offshore drilling industry. The vessel features National Oilwell Varco drilling packages…