Epi-V a ‘prominent' supporter of technologies in the oil and gas sector, says Real Deals
14 June 2011
Epi-V has been described by Real Deals, the independent private equity trade publication, as a ‘prominent example' of one of the few active investors in ‘technologies supporting the oil and gas sector'.
The appraisal came in the magazine's energy issue, for which Glynn Williams, partner at Epi-V, was interviewed on the challenges facing the oil and gas industry.
He highlighted the persistent and emerging hurdles facing the upstream services sector — which are set against a backdrop of increasing global energy demand and depleted oil reserves — and the importance of developing new technology in order to overcome them.
"For me, the industry today has to deal with old problems and new problems," he said. "The old problems involve developing new technologies to improve the ultimate recovery from existing oilfields. In some older fields, less than half of the oil has been taken out of the ground.
"The new problems stem from the fact that tomorrow's oil is going to be increasingly complex to extract. It is going to be drilled at hotter temperatures, in deeper water and under higher pressure. New components and technologies will be needed."
We invest in businesses with innovative technologies designed to meet these present and future challenges. Working with portfolio company management teams, we commercialise innovative technologies, drive industry take-up and create an optimal business structure capable of supporting rapid and sustainable growth.
Our investment in i-Tec, the hydraulic drilling products manufacturer, was also held up by Real Deals as a key example of how ‘private equity has already taken steps to benefit from the trends pointing to gas as the fossil fuel of the future'.
Stavanger-based i-Tec uses proven oilfield technology to develop its suite of specialist equipment, designed to reduce demands on the industry's stretched personnel resources and requirements for capital-intensive equipment. We made a £3.5 million investment in the company in June 2008, later upping its stake to take a majority share in the business.
On featuring in Real Deals' energy issue, Glynn Williams said: "We found the opportunity to comment in this important feature highly valuable and welcome any opportunity to share our industry insight with investors, management teams, entrepreneurs and the wider private equity community. Only by highlighting the importance of the investment in and development of industry-changing upstream oil and gas technologies will we address the challenges facing the sector."
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