Frack servicing companies face big challenges in 2020

Times are growing tougher for hydraulic fracturing servicing companies such as Denver-based Liberty Oilfield Services company, a firm that reported an 8% drop in revenue at the end of 2019.

Revenue for the company went from $2.2 billion in 2018 to $2 billion last year. Net income plunged from $249 for the year ended Dec. 31, 2018 to only $75 million at the end of 2019.

Adjusted earnings for Liberty also took a nose dive—from $438 million in 2018 to $277 million in 2019. Revenue for 2019 was $398 million which resulted in a net loss of $18 million or 15 cents a share for the quarter ending Dec. 31, 2019.

Here’s how Liberty explained the challenges it and other fracking service companies are facing:

“The sequential slowdown of completions in the fourth quarter was more pronounced than that experienced during the same period in 2018, as operators managed completions to fixed capital expenditure budgets, and some were constrained by capital markets. These capital constraints caused gaps in the completions schedule and negatively affected overall fleet utilization.”

For the fourth quarter of 2019, revenue decreased 23% to $398 million from $515 million in the third quarter of 2019.

Net loss before income taxes totaled $22 million for the fourth quarter of 2019 compared to net income before income taxes of $23 million for the third quarter of 2019. Net loss (after taxes) totaled $18 million for the fourth quarter of 2019 compared to net income of $19 million in the third quarter of 2019.

Despite the loss, Liberty has also increased its fleet count from 22 fleets at the end of 2018 to 24 fleets at the beginning of 2020.

 

Source: Business Wire