Axis and Brigade merge to create the largest well servicing company in the U.S.
(WO) - Axis Energy Services LLC and Brigade Energy Services LLC jointly announced the closing of an agreement to merge and form the nation's largest and most innovative well servicing company with the best-trained workforce.
The merger combines two high-growth organizations that have pioneered new ways to create value for an oil and natural gas industry seeking to become more efficient, agile, and sustainable amidst changing market and societal conditions.
The new organization is named Axis Energy Services LLC and will remain headquartered in Dallas.
The transaction elevates Axis as the nation's leading company for completion services, workover solutions and plug and abandonment operations. Axis now boasts more than 1,700 employees and 200 active and marketable workover rigs, which may be the largest single fleet in the industry. Axis also maintains a market-leading support-equipment operation that includes 50 cement pump trucks, 26 wireline trucks, 15 snubbing units, nearly 200 pumps and a sizeable fleet of BOPs and pipe handlers.
The combined company has a strong presence in the country's major oilfields – including the Permian, Haynesville, Eagle Ford, Utica/Marcellus, Bakken and the broader Rockies -- and can quickly deploy to almost any location in the continental U.S.
"The combination of Axis and Brigade begins a new chapter in the history of well service," said Axis CEO Ryan Phillips. "Both companies share a similar origin story with missions to fill critical gaps in oilfield services. We look forward to forming an organization that is even more scaled, innovative and workforce-ready as operator consolidation continues, leading producers to demand more from their providers. Our combined company is better able to meet those needs."
Brigade CEO Justin Bliffen said, "This merger not only increases scale for our increasingly concentrated and larger North American customers but also combines best practices from both companies around data analytics, innovation, personnel training and talent management."
Bliffen continued, "Together we will create a stronger company that is even more data-driven and disciplined in how workers and leaders are vetted, trained and deployed for optimal performance and safety."
The merger comes on the heels of Axis' successful rollout of the industry's first fully electric well service rig, which is currently working on wells operated by Occidental. Axis' EPIC (Electric-Powered Intervention & Completion) Rig ushered in new improvements in safety and efficiency, in addition to the ability to run on grid power for reduced emissions and increased fuel flexibility.
"This merger is happening when both companies are hitting new strides with growth and performance," said Phillips. "Combining our histories, our assets and our visions will multiply our impact on behalf of the nation's leading operators."
