North America Water-Based Drilling and Completion Fluids Industry

North America Drilling and Completion Fluids Market Analysis

The North America Drilling and Completion Fluids Market is expected to register a CAGR of 10.08% during the forecast period.

• The onshore segment accounted for the largest share in the market in 2018, owing to the onshore oil & gas activities in the United States and Canada.
• A close proximity to extensive infrastructure coupled with promising results from the deployment of new technology puts Austin Basin in a comparatively stronger position and hence is expected to provide an ample opportunity for the drilling and completion fluids market in the near future.
• The United States is expected to dominate the market over the forecast period owing to its robust drilling activities in the unconventional plays.

North America Drilling and Completion Fluids Market Trends

Onshore Segment to Dominate the Market

• Onshore segment accounted for more than half of the market share in 2018 and is expected to continue its dominance in the coming years. As of December 2018, the average onshore active rig count from the United States and Canada totalled 1,202 units, representing an increase of 13.3% over the previous year's value.
• As of 2018, the United States is leading the onshore oil and gas activity, followed by Canada, with its robust drilling in the shale reserves, resulting in a surge in the North American oil and gas production. The major reason behind the surge is the declining operational cost in the country's basin, which has made marginal projects economical in the low oil price regime.
• As the upstream activities continue to increase in North America, the demand for oil field services is also increasing. This, in turn, is expected to help the services companies to progress in this market over the forecast period.
• The onshore activity in North America had picked up so much in 2017 that the oilfield services sector is struggling to keep up with the demand. Moreover, the onshore sector has benefited more from the rise in crude oil price, when compared to offshore in North America.
• Adding to this, there is a large number of uncompleted wells across the region. These wells are expected to be completed in the coming years, creating an ample opportunity for completion fluid providers.

The United States to Dominate the Market

• The United States is one of the largest drilling and completion fluids markets across the world, due to many wells being drilled every year. In the global rig count, the United States accounted for almost half of the onshore global average rig count for the period of January to September 2019.
• During the past decade (since 2008), the upstream oil and gas activity has shifted toward the shell reserves. During 2018, tight oil (which predominantly includes crude oil from shale reserves) and dry gas from shale reserves accounted for 59% and 69% respectively, of the total crude oil and dry natural gas production in the country.
• Shale oil and gas production requires a much larger number of wells per acre than conventional oil fields, in turn, the requirement for a large number of wells per area and increasing share of the horizontal wells are expected to drive the demand for the completion and drilling fluid in the country.
• In 2004, horizontal wells accounted for about 15% and 14% of the country's crude oil production and natural gas production in the country. However, the share of horizontal wells in crude oil and natural gas production has increased to 96% and 97%, respectively, by the end of 2018. Hence, with increasing lateral length, the completion and drilling fluids market is being promulgated in the United States.

North America Drilling and Completion Fluids Industry Overview

The North America drilling and completion fluids market is fragmented. Some of the key players are Schlumberger Limited, Baker Hughes Co., Halliburton Company, and National-Oilwell Varco Inc. and CES Energy Solutions Corp.

North America Drilling and Completion Fluids Market Leaders