Barnett Shale也许是美国最大的陆地天然气存储区.最难的地方就是将天然气开采出来.德州的Dallas-Fort Worth地区占地5000平方公里,行里话称该叶岩区为”密不透风”存储池.意味着只有通过小口径钻井才能进行开采.这需要特殊的设备,比如Core Laboratories(代号:CLB)的”超级英雄”射孔弹.
射孔弹能够炸开在井洞和存储池之间的岩石.Stifel Nicolaus的分析师Thaddeus Vayda表示, “一旦你将其置于地面后,你就可以钻出一个管型洞.如果你没有用射孔弹进行爆破,就会产生很多岩屑.如果存储池过于紧密,洞很容易被堵塞.”超级英雄”是理想清洁的催化剂,使用此产品后岩屑明显减少,也就是说效率提升了.
新产品面世
Core,总部位于荷兰,去年开始发售”超级英雄”,主要就是考虑到了Barnett Shale地区的特殊地形.该款产品相当热销,销售额是Core其他传统射孔弹的三倍有余.分析师表示,这就是为什么Core的产品增殖部门能够在北美天然气市场不景气的情况下,依旧增长的原因.公司最近发售了大版本的”超级英雄”来增加出口量.
Core同时通过购入Entrada Geosciences来增加其在紧密天然气上的提取能力.这家位于丹佛的小型工厂的技术帮助Core从紧密沙层和叶岩中提取天然气样本.首席执行官 David Demshur表示,“当矿样被采集后,比如说是来自于Barnett Shale的样本,我们有能力就在矿井旁对天然气的量进行测量.之后就可以将天然气和矿样转移到我们的工厂进行进一步分析.”
Demshur表示,他计画将这种技术应用到Core的全球市场中去.他特别提到了加拿大. EOG Resources(代号:EOG)最近表示,通过对加拿大英属哥伦比亚省的勘探表明,该地域所蕴存的天然气甚至还高于Barnett Shale. Demshur表示,Core将于夏天在加拿大再开分部.
加拿大之后, Demshur相信公司的产品线能够在北美市场外所接受,比如中欧,南美,澳大利亚,特别是印度.Vayda称,“我们不认为天然气价格的增加是头等大事,我们认为这很实际.”
分析师Vayda认为这样的天然气投资能够获得回报,因为他预计钻井需求将会增大.他表示,天然气存量比五年平均水准低了18%,而原油价格的增长将促进对新能源的追求.
然而,陆上天然气并非Core的唯一业务.公司正增加其在原油和天然气钻井设备上的产品和服务范围.三季度,收购了Temco,令其具有分析最深达30000英尺的深海油区的岩石和流质样本的科技能力.所有这些举动令得Core能够自2003年以来保持稳定增长.
四季度,营收同比增长15%,至176.4亿美圆,利润增长39%,至每股1.36美圆.全年销售增长了16%,至6.71亿美圆,利润增长59%,至每股4.87美圆.
Demshur表示这样的增长趋势很符合公司的扩张计画.能源需求继续攀升,尽管新发现跟不上需求的脚步.
提高回收再利用率
总体而言,原油和天然气的回收再利用率大约在40%.公司希望提升至46-47%.
Vayda对该股评级持有,但他表示,那是因为该股不同寻常的增长速率:自从2003年触底以来,价格翻了12番还多.长远来看,公司的业务独一无二,基本面稳固.Vayda表示,两个问题依旧摆在桌面上:维持增长和回购股票,以弥补可转换债券带来的摊簿.“只要股票升值10美圆,他们就不得不回购 200000股来保持平衡.”
分析师预计今年收益增长26%,至每股6.12美圆.明年预计增长22%.至每股7.46美圆.
This SuperHero Blows A Cleaner Hole For Natural Gas Producers
Covering about 5,000 square miles in the Dallas-Fort Worth region of Texas, the shale is known in the industry as a "tight" reservoir. That means it can be accessed only through small openings.
That requires special equipment, such as Core Laboratories' (NYSE:CLB - News) SuperHero perforating charge. Perforating charges blast out the rock between a well bore and the reservoir.
"You are blowing holes in a piece of pipe once you've placed it in the ground," said Thaddeus Vayda, an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus. "And if you blow a hole in anything, you throw a lot of debris into the area around it. If it's a tight reservoir, you're clogging it up even more. (SuperHeroes) are fairly clean accelerants in that they throw much less debris into the well bore area, meaning much better initial flow rates."
New Product Takes Off
Core, based in the Netherlands, rolled out the SuperHero last year with the Barnett Shale specifically in mind. It's been a hit, with sales more than tripling those of the conventional perforating charges Core sells.
Analysts say it's one reason why Core's production-enhancement segment managed to grow in the fourth quarter despite a sluggish North American gas market. The firm recently built on this by launching a bigger version of the SuperHero to increase output volume.
Core also added to its abilities in tight gas extraction with its recent buyout of Entrada Geosciences. The small Denver firm's technology helps collect gas samples from tight sands and shales.
"When a core sample is taken from, let's say, the Barnett Shale," said Chief Executive David Demshur, "we have the ability to measure the amount of gas that comes out of the shale right at the well site. We can then transfer the gas and the core back to our facility to analyze (them) further."
Demshur says he plans to take this technology to Core's global markets. He especially has his eye on Canada. EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG - News) recently said some exploratory drilling in the Muskwa Formation in British Columbia indicated that the field has more gas than the Barnett Shale. Demshur says Core will open the Gas Shale Center for Canada in Core's Calgary branch this summer, just as the drilling starts in earnest.
After Canada, Demshur believes the product line can be applied to fields outside North America, such as central Europe, northern Africa, Australia and especially India.
Analyst Vayda believes this investment in natural gas could pay off, as he expects drilling to increase. Stored natural gas levels are about 18% below the five-year average, while the high price of oil is bound to boost demand for alternatives, he says.
"We don't think the increase in natural gas prices relative to last year is a 'head' thing," Vayda said. "We think it's real."
However, onshore natural gas is hardly Core's only business. The company keeps adding to its range of products and services to oil and gas drillers. In the third quarter it bought Temco, which brought technology that analyzes rock and fluid samples from deep-water oil deposits as much as 30,000 feet underground.
"You have enormous pressures and temperatures in these petroleum reservoirs," said Demshur. "We collect these fluids and put them in metal cylinders, (which) have to withstand some 30,000 pounds per square inch of pressure. (Temco) will give us the ability to manufacture these ultra-high-pressure cylinders."
Temco was also a small company selling only to Gulf of Mexico drillers, but Core plans to globalize this business, too. Demshur says deep-water fields off Brazil, West Africa and Asia can also use the technology.
All this activity has helped Core keep up the steady growth clip it has maintained since 2003. In the fourth quarter, revenue rose 15% from the year before to $176.4 million, while profit rose 39% to $1.36 per share.
For the full year, sales climbed 16% to $671 million while profit jumped 59% to $4.87 a share.
Demshur says trends favor Core's expansion. Demand for energy continues to climb, while new discoveries are not keeping pace.
"If you look over the last five years, outside of deep-water discoveries, we really haven't found any major new accumulations of oil and gas anywhere on the globe," he said. "That means that (field owners') assets are becoming more and more valuable. We're seeing larger investments in these already existing fields. The best thing is to try to recover additional amounts (of oil)."
Boosting Recovery Rate
Overall, the recovery rate from oil and gas fields is about 40%. Demshur says Core aims to boost that to 46% or 47%.
Vayda has a hold rating on the stock, but he says that's because of its extraordinary run-up: Since its bottom in 2003, the price has multiplied by more than 12 times. In the long term, he sees it as a unique business model with solid fundamentals.
Two challenges remain, Vayda says: maintaining consistent growth, and repurchasing shares to offset the dilution associated with convertible debt.
"For every $10 the stock appreciates, they have to repurchase 200,000 shares to remain even," he said.
Analysts expect earnings to rise 26% this year to $6.12 per share. Next year they see a similar 22% increase, to $7.46.
1 comment:
Investor's Business Daily
This SuperHero Blows A Cleaner Hole For Natural Gas Producers
Wednesday April 2, 5:57 pm ET
Amy Reeves
The Barnett Shale might be the largest onshore natural-gas field in the U.S. The hard part is getting the stuff out.
Covering about 5,000 square miles in the Dallas-Fort Worth region of Texas, the shale is known in the industry as a "tight" reservoir. That means it can be accessed only through small openings.
That requires special equipment, such as Core Laboratories' (NYSE:CLB - News) SuperHero perforating charge. Perforating charges blast out the rock between a well bore and the reservoir.
"You are blowing holes in a piece of pipe once you've placed it in the ground," said Thaddeus Vayda, an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus. "And if you blow a hole in anything, you throw a lot of debris into the area around it. If it's a tight reservoir, you're clogging it up even more. (SuperHeroes) are fairly clean accelerants in that they throw much less debris into the well bore area, meaning much better initial flow rates."
New Product Takes Off
Core, based in the Netherlands, rolled out the SuperHero last year with the Barnett Shale specifically in mind. It's been a hit, with sales more than tripling those of the conventional perforating charges Core sells.
Analysts say it's one reason why Core's production-enhancement segment managed to grow in the fourth quarter despite a sluggish North American gas market. The firm recently built on this by launching a bigger version of the SuperHero to increase output volume.
Core also added to its abilities in tight gas extraction with its recent buyout of Entrada Geosciences. The small Denver firm's technology helps collect gas samples from tight sands and shales.
"When a core sample is taken from, let's say, the Barnett Shale," said Chief Executive David Demshur, "we have the ability to measure the amount of gas that comes out of the shale right at the well site. We can then transfer the gas and the core back to our facility to analyze (them) further."
Demshur says he plans to take this technology to Core's global markets. He especially has his eye on Canada. EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG - News) recently said some exploratory drilling in the Muskwa Formation in British Columbia indicated that the field has more gas than the Barnett Shale. Demshur says Core will open the Gas Shale Center for Canada in Core's Calgary branch this summer, just as the drilling starts in earnest.
After Canada, Demshur believes the product line can be applied to fields outside North America, such as central Europe, northern Africa, Australia and especially India.
Analyst Vayda believes this investment in natural gas could pay off, as he expects drilling to increase. Stored natural gas levels are about 18% below the five-year average, while the high price of oil is bound to boost demand for alternatives, he says.
"We don't think the increase in natural gas prices relative to last year is a 'head' thing," Vayda said. "We think it's real."
However, onshore natural gas is hardly Core's only business. The company keeps adding to its range of products and services to oil and gas drillers. In the third quarter it bought Temco, which brought technology that analyzes rock and fluid samples from deep-water oil deposits as much as 30,000 feet underground.
"You have enormous pressures and temperatures in these petroleum reservoirs," said Demshur. "We collect these fluids and put them in metal cylinders, (which) have to withstand some 30,000 pounds per square inch of pressure. (Temco) will give us the ability to manufacture these ultra-high-pressure cylinders."
Temco was also a small company selling only to Gulf of Mexico drillers, but Core plans to globalize this business, too. Demshur says deep-water fields off Brazil, West Africa and Asia can also use the technology.
All this activity has helped Core keep up the steady growth clip it has maintained since 2003. In the fourth quarter, revenue rose 15% from the year before to $176.4 million, while profit rose 39% to $1.36 per share.
For the full year, sales climbed 16% to $671 million while profit jumped 59% to $4.87 a share.
Demshur says trends favor Core's expansion. Demand for energy continues to climb, while new discoveries are not keeping pace.
"If you look over the last five years, outside of deep-water discoveries, we really haven't found any major new accumulations of oil and gas anywhere on the globe," he said. "That means that (field owners') assets are becoming more and more valuable. We're seeing larger investments in these already existing fields. The best thing is to try to recover additional amounts (of oil)."
Boosting Recovery Rate
Overall, the recovery rate from oil and gas fields is about 40%. Demshur says Core aims to boost that to 46% or 47%.
Vayda has a hold rating on the stock, but he says that's because of its extraordinary run-up: Since its bottom in 2003, the price has multiplied by more than 12 times. In the long term, he sees it as a unique business model with solid fundamentals.
Two challenges remain, Vayda says: maintaining consistent growth, and repurchasing shares to offset the dilution associated with convertible debt.
"For every $10 the stock appreciates, they have to repurchase 200,000 shares to remain even," he said.
Analysts expect earnings to rise 26% this year to $6.12 per share. Next year they see a similar 22% increase, to $7.46.
Post a Comment