ERIELL expects business boost in 2H20

Speaking on a Russian-language webcast on 16 July, Dokunikhin, who is also CEO of ERIELL Russia, said a joint effort by the Russian government, contractors and employees enabled the company to protect its business and weather the storm. He said the pandemic forced ERIELL to slow some operations and to relocate others, but the company focused on minimising adverse effects, as well as carefully managing client relations and working capital. Recent oil price improvements have now provided a solid platform for the company to perform well in 3Q20 and further into the year, he added.

“There were crises before: in 2008-9 and later in 2015-16,” he said. “We managed then and we learned some lessons of how to deal with crises. That was very useful.”

Dokunikhin cited industry estimates that oil production in Russia for 2020 will have declined by 8.5% and drilling by 15.2%. This led to some contract revisions, cost reductions and payment extensions. But ultimately relatively few adjustments had to be made, he said. He attributed this to ERIELL’s diverse customer base and to the company’s experience in some of the harshest environments, from the High Arctic to hot deserts. He also noted ERIELL’s solid reputation among oilfield services companies with some of the best drilling crews in the industry.

He noted some of the challenges posed by the Covid-19 crisis. “It was not easy, but with the help of our contractors we were able to organise testing for our personnel and to change schedules of work, so it continued without too much interruption."

Read the article online at: https://www.oilfieldtechnology.com/drilling-and-production/20072020/eriell-expects-business-boost-in-2h20/