OREANDA-NEWS. On 17 March 2008 MoscowIntegra Group, a leading Russian independent provider of onshore oilfield services, announced the creation of Integra-MashService, a newly incorporated subsidiary which will service and provide maintenance of oil and gas equipment. Integra-MashService was formed as the result of the expansion of service subdivisions of Uralmash-Burovoe Oborudovanie (Yekaterinburg), a key part of Integra’s equipment manufacturing segment.

Integra-MashService will provide major overhauls, modernization, safety expertise and technical diagnostics of drilling equipment. Currently, Integra already services drilling equipment in close proximity to the oil and gas producing provinces through its subsidiary Orenburgtekhservis.

Integra’s management maintains a very positive outlook for the oil and gas equipment service industry. Up to 70% of Russia’s drilling equipment is out of date while the increasing demand for drilling rigs due to the growth of drilling volumes still remains to a great extent unsatisfied. Oil and gas producers are thus looking to overhaul their existing aging rig fleets which require substantial repairs, modernization, spare parts and technical maintenance.
 
Commenting on the formation of Integra-MashService Vitaly Tkachev, Integra Group’s Executive Vice president for equipment manufacturing and President of Uralmash-VNIIBT said:

“Servicing of oil and gas equipment is a very promising business as depreciation levels of drilling equipment in Russia have created significant levels of deferred demand from our Customers. The creation of a specialized service enterprise will increase the overall profitability of our equipment manufacturing division and create a stable pipeline of orders. We will also be able to offer integrated manufacturing solutions to our customers, which would entail not only the production of drilling rigs, but their subsequent maintenance. In addition, Uralmash-Burovoe oborudovanie’s 60-year experience will provide us with a number of important competitive advantages over other players in the oil and gas equipment manufacturing market.”