John Crane Wins Major Contract To Boost Romanian Oil Output

JOHN CRANE today announces a major contract to upgrade and maintain Romania's oil wells by providing pump repair services and equipment for Petrom’s 8000-plus wells in the second phase of a key modernisation project.

Petrom, a member of OVM group, the largest oil and gas producer in Eastern Europe, first chose John Crane in 2007 to manage its Well Modernisation Programme and increase output cost-effectively. Petrom's oil and gas production meets around one third of Romania's energy demand.

Part of the global technology business Smiths Group, John Crane has completed contracts worth £15 million on the first phase of the project to date. The wells now run much longer without servicing, resulting in considerable savings for Petrom as equipment failures in wells can cost millions of pounds per day in lost revenue.

The second phase, expected to generate annual revenues of about £14 million, covers a broader range of pumps and will expand John Crane's geographic spread across Romania to another 13 sites. It is expected to last at least three years.

The new contracts were awarded for the continued supply of artificial lift equipment and services by John Crane Production Solutions. This specialist business unit focuses on helping customers improve productivity of their wells by providing pumping equipment and maintenance services to reduce downtime and costs. Paul Cox, President, John Crane, said: "The contract win underlines the success of the first phase and the confidence Petrom has in our industry-leading maintenance services which allow companies to improve both output and cost efficiency."