Use of Frac Sleeves Declined in 2018

North America land oil & gas operators report a declining use of frac sleeves in favor of plug & perf.

US land operators have increased their use of plug & perf from approximately 86% of their completions in 2016 to 97% in 2018 with overall frac sleeve and pinpoint coiled tubing comprising only 3% of US land completions among the operators surveyed.

These findings and results are based on personal interviews with 188 completion engineers and managers representing over 100 unique operating companies and published in the Kimberlite 2018 Hydraulic Fracturing report.

Traditionally, the use of frac sleeves has been highest in Canada, but the 2018 Kimberlite report reveals that even the Canadian operators decreased the use of frac sleeves in 2018. Use of frac sleeves in Canada has declined from approximately 71% in 2016 to 49% in 2018.

Use of dissolvable plugs continues to grow and approximately 45% of North America land operators plan to increase use of dissolvable plugs in the next two years.

Kimberlite Research will continue to track operator’s operational plans and technology trends and provide updates.