Halliburton cuts losses as market stabilizes

Losses for Houston-based Halliburton shrank in the third quarter as the oilmarkethas stabilized several months after the coronavirus pandemic slashed demand and led to a debilitating downturn.

Halliburton on Monday said it lost $17 million in the third-quarter, the fourth-straight quarterly loss for the oil-field services company. The company made $295 million in the same quarter of 2019.

Still, the latest results are significantly better than the $1.7 billion loss in the second quarter, which suffered from a deep write-down on the value of oil and gas assets after crude prices collapsed this year.

Halliburton’s results follow those of Schlumberger, the world’s largest oil-field services company, which also sharply pared losses in the third quarter.

The industry is still struggling, however, seven months after the coronavirus pandemic swept the U.S ., slashing demand during lockdown measures aimed at slowing the spread of the disease. Halliburton’s revenue in the quarter declined 46 percent to about $3 billion from $5.6 billion in the same quarter of 2019. It was off 7 percent from second-quarter revenue of $3.2 billion. Company executives attributed the dropin revenue to decreased oil well construction activity.

“We will focus on profit, not share, in this more consolidated market,” CEO and Chairman Jeff Miller told investors Monday.

The number of operating oil and gas rigs in the U.S. is 282, according to the Baker Hughes rig count — down more than 60 percent since the sameweek last year. But it, too, is pointing to a more stable oil market, rising for five straight weeks and adding 13 rigs most recently.

Halliburton’s declining revenue was offset by increasing activity in South America, Chief Financial Officer Lance Loeffler said. Halliburton is increasingly focusing on international business as the U.S. shale boom fades and the once rapidly declining production abroad is showing signs of improvement.

Miller said the firm would keep its North American operations “leaner (and) more profitable.”

“Our strong international business is already delivering returns, and I expect that will continue,” he said. “Our leaner North American business will enable us to successfully navigate through the market contraction.”

The downturn could continue to linger longer than previously expected, with global oil demand remaining below pre-pandemic levels until at least 2023, according to the International Energy Agency. Meanwhile, a move to reduce carbon emissions through the growing use of renewable energy will add pressure to the industry.

“We recognize that the energy landscape is evolving,” said Miller, adding: “We believe theworldwill need a lot of oil and gas for a very long time.”