OREANDA-NEWS. July 13, 2010. Integra Group (LSE: INTE), a leading FSU-based onshore oilfield services provider, and WesternGeco, the seismic business segment of Schlumberger, today announced agreement on the principal terms of an exclusive seismic joint venture company to be known as IG Seismic Services Limited.

The joint venture will provide land seismic acquisition services as well as interpretation and data processing in Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan and their respective transition zone waters. WesternGeco will become a minority shareholder in the venture with a 25% stake through the contribution of its land and transition zone seismic and data processing business in the aforementioned countries together with cash and access to certain proprietary Q? technology and Omega? data processing software. Day-to-day management of the venture is expected to be performed by Integra while key strategic and investment decisions will be made by the board of the joint venture with input from WesternGeco.  

The new company will benefit from the synergies created by combining the partners’ experience, technology, operational expertise and marketing skills. IG Seismic Services Limited will continue to pursue the existing Integra strategy of undertaking land seismic projects outside the CIS and as part of the transaction the parties also agree to cooperate in such services in other areas. The venture will operate a combined capacity of more than 40 seismic crews and nearly 900 CPUs of computer processing power with best-in-class software for data processing and interpretation. 

Commenting on the transaction, Antonio Campo, Integra’s Chief Executive Officer said:

“We are very excited about expanding our capabilities by joining forces with WesternGeco. The agreement will boost the service range and expand the market presence of our core seismic segment. With the introduction of WesternGeco personnel and technology, the new venture will ensure efficient development of our joint seismic operations while the combination of our processing centers in Russia and Kazakhstan will substantially increase our data processing capabilities. We believe this move is in line with our strategy to increase our presence in businesses with higher added value and further improve our technology.”

Carl Trowell, President WesternGeco said:

“This new venture enhances the competitive strength and geographical footprint of its partners while providing additional business opportunities and expansion of the client base. In addition, the synergy created will bring significant value to customers as they expand their operations throughout the area”.