Integrated Projects

An integrated project is one where a single service provider, such as SLB, takes end-to-end responsibility for an asset's life cycle, from exploration and well construction through production optimization and decommissioning, replacing the traditional model of managing multiple specialist contractors.

Six key trends are accelerating adoption:

• Energy transition—Operators must reduce carbon intensity and embed lower-carbon technologies within tighter capital budgets.
• Bundled procurement—Buyers prefer a single-package service over sourcing each discipline separately.
• Talent constraints—A shrinking workforce makes complex multivendor structures harder to manage internally.
• Cost pressure—Efficiency demands and lower total cost of ownership favor streamlined, single-accountability models.
• Geopolitical uncertainty—Global instability creates preference for simpler, more resilient project structures.
• Digital acceleration—Remote operations, automation, and AI perform best within a unified delivery framework.

Integrated project delivery supports flexible pricing structures tailored to an operator's risk tolerance, budget certainty, and project complexity:

• Fee-for-service—Day-rate billing for individual services, best suited to operators who want to retain direct control over scope and scheduling.
• Risk and reward—Performance-based contracts where incentives are tied to agreed KPIs, aligning both parties around shared outcomes.
• Lump sum—A fixed price delivering maximum budget certainty while transferring execution risk to the service provider.
• Production sharing—Payment linked to output above an agreed baseline, giving the service provider a direct stake in production performance.

The right model depends on asset life cycle phase, risk appetite, and your desired level of operational control. Many integrated projects use hybrid structures that evolve as the project matures.

Integrated project delivery eliminates the gaps, delays, and misalignments that arise when multiple providers operate in silos. With a single provider accountable across the full asset life cycle, decisions in each phase are optimized with the next in mind. This means:

• Lower costs—Shared infrastructure and reduced interface management lower both capex and opex.
• Faster time to production—Integrated planning removes handover delays common in multivendor structures.
• Better recovery outcomes—A unified view of reservoir behavior and well performance drives more informed production decisions.
• Proactive risk management—A single accountable provider can identify and address emerging issues before they cascade across phases.
• Sustained performance—Integrated providers are incentivized to maintain asset health over the long term, not just optimize a single phase.

This whole-life-cycle perspective is valuable for complex assets such as deepwater fields, HPHT environments, mature fields requiring enhanced recovery, and projects with a significant CCUS or low-carbon component.

Choosing an integrated services provider is one of the most consequential decisions in field development. Key criteria to evaluate:

• Technical breadth and depth—End-to-end delivery across subsurface, well construction, production, and digital—without subcontracting core disciplines.
• Digital integration—Real-time monitoring, AI-driven decision support, and remote operations that reduce nonproductive time.
• Commercial flexibility—Contract structures—fixed-price, performance-based, or hybrid—that reflect your risk profile.
• Relevant track record—Case studies demonstrating delivery performance in comparable basins and environments, not just capability.
• Local capability with global expertise—A global knowledge base combined with local talent and supply chains to navigate regulatory and logistical complexity.

Digital capability is what separates a true integrated provider from one that simply bundles field services under a single contract. The most effective models combine physical execution with digital tools that improve decision-making, reduce risk, and optimize performance in real time:

• Real-time monitoring—Continuous data feeds enabling faster, better-informed decisions at every stage of operations.
• AI-driven optimization—Machine learning that predicts equipment performance, flags anomalies, and recommends interventions before issues affect production.
• Remote operations and automation—Reduced onsite personnel requirements with significant safety and cost benefits.
• Integrated subsurface modeling—Digital workflows connecting reservoir data to well planning, production forecasting, and field development in a continuously updated model.
• Emissions monitoring—Tools that track and reduce carbon intensity, supporting sustainability reporting and regulatory compliance.

When digital and field services share a single provider, data from each phase feeds directly into the next—creating a compounding performance advantage that fragmented models cannot replicate.