Will 50% of the fracking companies be gone by the end of the year?
This is precisely the opinion of Rob Fulks, pressure pumping marketing director at Weatherford International Plc, who spoke with Bloomberg at the annual IHS CERAWeek in Houston last week. Fulk predicts that of the 41 current companies that provide fracking services, only 2o will still be viable at year’s end.
At the start of 2014, there were 61 fracking service providers in the U.S. and those numbers have decreased as the demand for fracking has dropped off dramatically. Many firms are forced to leave wells unfinished because they are no longer economically viable. Another reason for the decline is the big mergers over the last few months, including Halliburton;s plan to buy Baker Hughes.
Related: Halliburton to Merge With Baker Hughes
Weatherford has had their own share of troubles, announcing plans this week to plans to cut 18% of its staff by the end of the second quarter. These actions are part of a spending cut designed to save the company $640 million this year.
“According to Bloomberg, Fulks wouldn’t say whether Weatherford is want to acquire other fracking companies or their unused equipment. “We go by and we see yards are locked up and the doors are closed,” he said. “It’s not good for equipment to park anything, whether it’s an airplane, a frack pump or a car.”