Seismic firms see business rise with search for oil, gas

The ongoing global rush to explore for new sources of hydrocarbons, fueled by higher prices, has contributed to hectic activity at companies like Dawson Geophysical, Schlumberger Ltd. and Petroleum Geo-Services ASA, all of which perform high-tech seismic surveys for oil companies. Finding and gaining access to new reservoirs is an increasingly difficult task, taking oil companies into deeper waters and rugged, more intricate terrain.

“The age of easy oil is over,” Schlumberger Chairman and Chief Executive Andrew Gould said at a recent energy conference in New Orleans.

Such scenarios have created lucrative opportunities for Schlumberger, whose fourth quarter income soared 71 percent largely because of heavy exploration activity worldwide and better-than-expected results at its seismic arm. Its 2006 sales were $19.23 billion, up 34 percent from 2005.

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