Nabors Industries Ltd. invested $8 million in GA Drilling, a.s. to expand its clean energy portfolio by adding deep-drilling technologies tapping super-hot, ultra-deep rock reservoirs.
This agreement complements the pre-series investment round recently concluded by GA Drilling, with the total value of those new investments exceeding $20 million.
The investment will allow Nabors to implement its energy transition strategy targeted at high growth potential, lower-carbon energy markets. Through this and three other clean energy venture investments, the company is establishing several ecosystems of technologies that will benefit from synergies with its existing operations and competencies.
"Now is the time to invest in innovative and bold geothermal solutions that have the potential to unlock terawatts of clean, renewable and reliable energy on a truly global scale," Anthony G. Petrello, chairman, CEO and president of Nabors, said in a press release on March 30.
"Given the expected sharp growth in global energy consumption over the next decades, the world will require an even sharper growth in sustainable energy supply. I am convinced that geothermal energy will be a key contributor to the necessary increase in clean energy generation."
Based in Bratislava, Slovakia, GA Drilling is a geothermal technology company specializing in plasma drilling. By integrating its contactless PLASMABIT drilling tool into Nabors' automated and lower-emission drilling operations, the collaboration should accelerate field commercialization and eliminate traditional economic barriers of ultradeep projects to expand global access to geothermal energy.
Paired with Nabors' prior investments in GeoX Energy, Sage GeoSystems and Quaise Inc., the GA Drilling investment aims to make geothermal energy widely accessible across geographies while reducing cost per unit of energy generated to match the cost of other energy sources.
"The present agreement will allow us to move faster through the final stages of PLASMABIT development, leveraging the synergies to integrate this revolutionary drilling tool into the systems of the rig," Igor Kočiš, founder and CEO of GA Drillling, said in the press release. "Together, we will work toward meeting imminent demand to rapidly diversify the global energy mix."
Recommended Reading
TPH: Lower 48 to Shed Rigs Through 3Q Before Gas Plays Rebound
2024-03-13 - TPH&Co. analysis shows the Permian Basin will lose rigs near term, but as activity in gassy plays ticks up later this year, the Permian may be headed towards muted activity into 2025.
Seadrill Awarded $97.5 Million in Drillship Contracts
2024-01-30 - Seadrill will also resume management services for its West Auriga drillship earlier than anticipated.
US Drillers Add Most Oil, Gas Rigs in a Week Since September
2024-03-15 - The oil and gas rig count, an early indicator of future output, rose by seven to 629 in the week to March 15.
US Drillers Add Most Oil Rigs in a Week Since November
2024-02-23 - The oil and gas rig count rose by five to 626 in the week to Feb. 23
US Drillers Cut Oil, Gas Rigs for First Time in Three Weeks
2024-02-02 - Baker Hughes said U.S. oil rigs held steady at 499 this week, while gas rigs fell by two to 117.