Basic Energy Services reports drop in month-to-month rig use

  A. Lee Graham Reporter   Basic Energy Services Inc. of Fort Worth has reported fewer well-servicing rig hours, dropping from 79,200 in August to 69,300 in September. Meanwhile, the oil and gas well-services company saw lower rig utilization, with the rate dropping from 77 percent in August to 71 percent in September. The 71 percent rate remained unchanged compared to September 2012, according to the company’s newly released report on September 2013 activity. Rig utilization rates determine what percentage of a company’s rigs is in use. “Our outlook for the fourth quarter indicates that revenue will be down about 6 percent to 7 percent sequentially due to the seasonal factors, which typically occur in the fourth quarter of each year,” said president and CEO Roe Patterson, commenting in a news release. “Due to the seasonal slowdown, lower utilization levels could increase competitive pressure in some markets that are already crowded,” said Patterson, predicting that pricing and margins could be affected as the company competes to maintain market share.   Also in the new report, the company reported its well-servicing rig count remained unchanged at 425, while its fluid service truck count dropped by one to 969. Fluid service truck hours for the month totaled 189,600 compared to 200,300 and 175,000 in August 2013 and September 2012, respectively. Drilling rig days for September 2013 totaled 267, yielding a rig utilization of 74 percent, compared to 75 percent and 80 percent in August 2013 and September 2012, respectively. Basic Energy Services, which provides oil and gas well-site services, employs more than 5,500 workers in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas, Kansas and the Rocky Mountain and Appalachian regions. More information is available at www.basicenergyservices.com.   lgraham@bizpress.net