There's no denying that costs have become a big problem in the oil industry. The cost of megaprojects had been spiraling out of control before oil prices collapsed last year as the supply curve in the industry had been on a steady inflationary climb for over a decade. However, with lower oil prices now expected to be the new normal, service costs are expected to drop, which could pose a problem for giants Schlumberger Limited and Halliburton . That's unless, of course, they do some something to change the dynamic, which appears to be on the horizon.
A potential structural change
Schlumberger CEO Paal Kibsgaard hinted at a new way of tackling the industry's cost problems on the company's first-quarter conference call. In so doing he piqued the interest of an analyst, who pushed for information by saying,
Kibsgaard responded by saying,
What Kibsgaard is suggesting is that Schlumberger wants a bigger voice in the initial decisions that go into designing an oil and gas project. Instead of simply being hired to carry out the oil company's vision, it wants to help design that vision as it has greater expertise with the details of what works and what does not so that it can help its customers make better decisions earlier on in the process. In so doing, it should save its customers money in the long run.
Collaboration is key
Kibsgaard would later point out:
As Kibsgaard points out, he envisions closer collaboration between oil companies and large service contractors Schlumberger and Halliburton as being the key to reduce costs and boost project value. It's a model that would have upside to service contractors in the form of performance-based contracting models where achieving cost or timeline goals would likely trigger a performance bonus. That upside would keep service margins intact while costs elsewhere are reduced.
It's collaboration that Halliburton also stressed on its conference call. President Jeff Miller noted that while its customers were asking for price discounts to deal with weaker oil prices, it is also having a discussion "around efficiency and contracting, which is how to better work with Halliburton to take system costs out of drilling." It's this collaborative effort to focus on costs that don't need to be spent that could drive long-term improvements in the sector.
Investor takeaway
With no clear line of sight to higher oil prices, Schlumberger and Halliburton are looking for ways to change the way the industry operates in order to get costs to come down permanently. To achieve that goal, both companies want to work more collaboratively with oil companies to find solutions that will drive out costs, but without impacting their bottom lines. It's an effort that could be a real winner for both service giants and oil companies.
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The article Are Halliburton Company and Schlumberger Limited About to Change the Oil Industry Forever? originally appeared on Fool.com.
Matt DiLallo has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Halliburton. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days . We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy .
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
