Oilfield services giant Schlumberger has agreed to acquire Cameron for $14.8 billion, a move the former said would create a “pore-to-pipeline” products and services offering. Schlumberger CEO Paal Kibsgaard said the deal would help his firm lower operating costs and improve efficiency, which has become more critical to producers amid low oil prices.
Kibsgaard also said he believes the industry’s next technical breakthrough will come via the combination of Schlumberger’s reservoir and well technologies with Cameron’s expertise in surface, drilling, processing and flow control technologies. The two firms are already partners in OneSubsea — a joint venture that specializes in subsea oil and gas production.
Via FuelFix, the timing of the deal suggests the oil market downturn will soon bottom out. An analyst at Stephens Inc. noted that Schlumberger could have waited until conditions worsened before agreeing to the acquisition.
The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2016.
