Weatherford continues industry teamwork trend

May 8 (UPI) -- The trend in upstream collaboration continued with Weatherford International announcing it would collaborate with a pump specialist.

Weatherford signed a memorandum of understanding with Valiant Artificial Lift Solutions to work on ways of bringing specialized pumps to the market. The pumps are designed for harsh and corrosive environments.

Kyle Chapman, the president of the production division at Weatherford, one of the world's largest oilfield services company, said the agreement blends well with the company's effort to spread out into specialty markets.

"We are pleased with the results of this collaboration and believe it will drive stakeholder value for Valiant, Weatherford and our collective customers," Valiant's founder, President and CO Gareth Ford said in a statement.

Crude oil prices are at multi-year highs, indicating the market has recovered from the decline in recent years that forced oil and gas producers to invest less in the services that companies like Weatherford provide.

Several of the oilfield services companies are consolidating their work through various joint ventures or MOUs. Schlumberger, the largest company of its kind, formed several ventures with its industry partners last year and in February proposed a joint venture with offshore services company Subsea 7.

Weatherford three years ago closed six service facilities and 90 operating facilities in North America while at the same time completing its target of cutting payrolls by 14,000. The company reported first quarter revenue at $1.42 billion, down 4 percent from the fourth quarter.