ROGTEC Interviews Jeremy Roemershauser of Arnco Technologies
Please introduce yourself with a short bio and your history in Russia
My name is Jeremy Roemershauser, Business Development Manager for Russia, Africa, China, Europe and the MENA/CIS regions. In my role with Arnco, I am able to see how our different markets have developed, allowing me to bring those successes to regions like Russia where there is a large potential for growth.
Arnco was founded in 1992 to provide casing friendly hardbanding alloys to the drilling industry. Since then, we have become the market leader and most widely used hardbanding worldwide. Our next generation products, 150XT™ and 350XT™, continue the Arnco legacy of providing innovative hardbanding solutions and now lead the market in performance with the most casing-friendly and durable products currently offered.
How long have you been doing business in the region?
Drill pipe and tools with Arnco’s hardbanding have been working in country for many years. We’ve recently focused our efforts towards building our applicator network throughout the country to better service the re-application market as more and more Russian Operators and Drillers recognize the importance of ongoing hardbanding application to preserve the useful life of their casing and drilling tools.
Do you have a specific target market in the region? (ie Russia, Kazakhstan, key regions or market sectors offshore, EOR etc?)
Since our products are designed to protect drillipipe, downhole tools and casing, all active drilling regions in and around Russia are target markets for us. For example, a harsher drilling environment where there is heavy abrasion to drillpipe and more wear resistance is needed, we would suggest our most durable product 350XT™. If the operator is looking for casing protection, we offer the 150XT™, which has the lowest tested casing-wear results in the market to protect the integrity of the well, coupled with excellent durability for protecting tool-joints. Due to our global presence and world-wide distribution developed over two decades, our products have been used down-hole in almost every drilling region, many with very harsh and challenging down-hole conditions. This has given our team extensive knowledge and experience towards understanding these challenges and working with customers to provide the best solution for their specific application.
What are your key products for the region and their benefits?
Arnco’s next generation products, 150XT™ and 350XT™, are our most recent innovations offering the industry crack-free, applicator friendly products that represent the best in tool-joint and casing protection. The 350XT™ is the most durable hardbanding on the market providing maximum protection for tool-joints, while 150XT™ is the most casing-friendly product offered to protect against casing-wear. Both 150XT™ and 350XT™ are also non-cracking which allows for ease of re-application over worn layers, saving time and money. Determination of what product to use will depend on the customer’s needs and specifications for their drilling program.
What potential is there for your products in the market?
The Russian market is unique for Arnco. Hardbanding as an after-market service has not been widely used in Russia. This challenges us to develop the market across all active drilling regions throughout the country. The sales approach is focused on education of the uses and economic benefits of our products. The market has been receptive to after-market hardbanding services as the benefits significantly outweigh the costs. For example, Arnco 350XT™once in use, will require fewer re-application cycles when compared with other competitive products allowing it to stay in service longer between maintenance intervals. As a result, downtime is minimized helping to reduce overall drilling costs.
How do you compare and compete with existing Russian Technology?
To our knowledge, there are no domestically produced hardbanding products in Russia.
How do you see the market developing over the next 5 years in your industry sector?
With the current industry consensus for healthy oil prices going forward, we believe the Russian drilling market will not slow down anytime soon with regard to the hardbanding re-application market. With high oil prices, and a long-term consensus that they will continue for some time, we believe Russia is a young and promising market with regard to hardbanding use and application infrastructure growth. Use if our next generation products continues to grow significantly with positive feedback from the field, and we look forward to seeing the same in Russia. We see use of Arnco’s products and the Arnco applicator network growing substantially throughout the region over the next few years.
Do you have any new products being launched?
We are in the process of introducing a patent-pending non-magnetic hardbanding that will be used for non-magnetic stainless steel collars and specialty tools. Arnco’s Non-MagXT™ is an iron based alloy with a high hardness rating, making it more durable than what other competitors are offering. This will allow for longer use in the field and less downtime for hardbanding maintenance, a very important feature for rental tools..
Do you have any recent regional success stories?
We have been working with a large Russian contract driller in the Siberian region for quite some time to use our products. They are now specifying Arnco 350XT™ on their drillstrings. We look to have a case study done with them by the end of the year to share with other drillers in the region showing superior benefits of using Arnco 350XT™.
Any further comments?
The Russian market has unique challenges, and it’s important for us to understand and respect the Russian business culture. We see Russia as a major growth center for years to come, and look forward to supporting end-users’ needs while growing available hardbanding services throughout the marketplace.
