TETRA Technologies Profile
TETRA Technologies, Inc. (TETRA), together with its consolidated subsidiaries, is an energy services and solutions company with operations on six continents focused on developing environmentally conscious services and solutions that help make people’s lives better.
In addition to providing products and services to the oil and gas industry and calcium chloride for diverse applications, TETRA is expanding into the low-carbon energy market with chemistry expertise, key mineral acreage, and global infrastructure, helping to meet the demand for sustainable energy in the twenty-first century.
Segments
The company has two reportable segments - Completion Fluids & Products Division and Water & Flowback Services Division.
The company’s Completion Fluids & Products Division manufactures and markets clear brine fluids (‘CBFs’), additives, and associated products and services to the oil and gas industry for use in well drilling, completion, and workover operations in the United States and in certain countries in Latin America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. The Division also markets liquid and dry calcium chloride products manufactured at its production facilities or purchased from third-party suppliers to a variety of markets outside the energy industry, and markets TETRA PureFlow an ultra-pure zinc bromide ,as well as TETRA PureFlow Plus, an ultra-pure zinc bromide/zinc chloride blend; both to several battery technology companies.
The company’s Water & Flowback Services Division provides onshore oil and gas operators with comprehensive water management services. The Division also provides frac flowback, production well testing, and other associated services in many of the major oil and gas producing regions in the United States, as well as in oil and gas basins in certain countries in Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East.
The company continues to pursue a long-term growth strategy that includes expanding the company’s core businesses, domestically and internationally, through the introduction of new technology, organic growth, and accretive acquisitions.
Products and Services
Completion Fluids & Products Division
Liquid calcium chloride, calcium bromide, zinc bromide, zinc calcium bromide, sodium bromide, and blends of such products manufactured by the company’s Completion Fluids & Products Division are referred to as CBFs in the oil and gas industry. CBFs are salt solutions that have variable densities and are used to control bottom-hole pressures during oil and gas completion and workover operations. The Division sells CBFs and various CBF additives to the United States and international oil and gas exploration and production companies and to other companies that service customers in the oil and gas industry.
The Completion Fluids & Products Division provides both stock and custom-blended CBFs based on each customer’s specific needs and the proposed application. It provides a broad range of associated CBF services, including on-site fluids filtration, handling and recycling; wellbore cleanup; custom fluids blending; and fluid management services. The Division’s flagship CBF technology, TETRA CS Neptune are high-density monovalent and divalent fluids that are free of undissolved solids, zinc, priority pollutants, and formate ions. They were developed by TETRA to be environmentally friendly alternatives to traditional zinc bromide high-density completion fluids and environmentally friendly alternatives to cesium formate high-density completion fluids, all of which are used in well completion and workover operations, as well as low-solids reservoir drilling fluids.
The Completion Fluids & Products Division offers to repurchase, or ‘buy-back’, certain used CBFs from customers, which can be reconditioned and recycled. The company recondition used CBFs through filtration, blending and the use of proprietary chemical processes, and then market the reconditioned CBFs.
By blending different CBFs and using various additives, the company is able to modify the specific density, crystallization temperature, and chemical composition of the CBFs as required to meet the company’s customers’ specific needs. The Division’s fluid engineering personnel determine the optimal CBF blend for a customer’s particular application to maximize its effectiveness and lifespan. The company’s filtration services use a variety of techniques and equipment to remove particulates from CBFs at the customer’s site so the CBFs can be reused. Filtration also enables recovery of a greater percentage of used CBFs for reconditioning.
The Completion Fluids & Products Division manufactures liquid and dry calcium chloride and liquid calcium bromide, zinc bromide, zinc calcium bromide, and sodium bromide for distribution, primarily into energy markets. Liquid and dry calcium chloride are also sold into water treatment, industrial, cement, food processing, road maintenance, ice melt, agricultural, and consumer products markets. Sodium bromide is also sold into industrial water treatment markets, where it is used as a biocide in recirculated cooling tower waters and in other applications.
The company’s calcium chloride manufacturing facilities are located in the United States and Finland. In the United States, the company manufactures liquid calcium chloride products at four manufacturing plant facilities. Liquid and flake calcium chloride are also produced at the company’s Kokkola, Finland plant. The company operates its European calcium chloride operations under the names TETRA Chemicals Europe AB and TETRA Chemicals Europe Oy. In the United States, the company also manufactures liquid calcium chloride at the company’s facilities in Parkersburg, West Virginia and Lake Charles, Louisiana, and the company has two solar evaporation facilities located in San Bernardino County, California, that produce liquid calcium chloride and sodium chloride from underground brine reserves, which are replenished naturally. The company’s calcium chloride production facilities have a combined production capacity of approximately 1.0 million equivalent liquid tons per year. The company also acquires calcium chloride inventory from other producers.
The company’s Completion Fluids & Products Division manufactures liquid calcium bromide, zinc bromide, zinc calcium bromide, and sodium bromide at the company’s West Memphis, Arkansas facility. A proprietary process applied at this facility uses bromine and zinc to manufacture zinc bromide. This facility also uses proprietary processes to manufacture calcium bromide and sodium bromide and to recondition and upgrade used CBFs that the company has repurchased from its customers.
The company is also pursuing low-carbon energy initiatives that leverage the company’s fluids and aqueous chemistry core competencies, the company’s significant bromine and lithium resources (including the company’s approximately 40,000 gross acres of brine leases in Arkansas) and technologies, and the company’s leading calcium chloride production capabilities. In May 2021, the company signed a memorandum of understanding (‘MOU’) with CarbonFree Chemicals Holdings, LLC (‘CarbonFree’), a carbon capture company with patented technologies that capture CO2 and mineralize emissions to make commercial, carbon-negative chemicals. Although the MOU expired in May 2022 at the end of its twelve-month term, the company has an intellectual property joint development agreement in place with CarbonFree to evaluate potential new technologies. The company has also reached agreement with CarbonFree on the potential use of a unique solution proposed by TETRA to produce low carbon calcium chloride to support their SkyCycle emissions technology.
In August 2021, the company announced the completion of a preliminary technical assessment by an independent geological consulting firm to assess lithium and bromine exploration targets in the company’s Southwest Arkansas brine leases. Bromine is a key mineral component in zinc-bromide energy storage systems and the company’s TETRA PureFlow is an ultra-pure zinc bromide, which has been qualified by several battery technology companies. The lithium battery market is a rapidly growing market, affording the company the potential opportunity to participate in a meaningful way. In December 2021, the company announced a strategic agreement with Eos Energy Enterprises, Inc. (‘Eos’) involving a long-term supply and collaboration agreement to supply the company’s ultra-pure zinc bromide TETRA PureFlow to Eos. TETRA and Eos expect to collaborate for improved battery performance, cost and system life including a solution for the end of a battery’s life using TETRA's extensive experience with reclaiming and recycling zinc bromide. In January 2024, the company entered into a preferred supply agreement through December 31, 2027 in which Eos has agreed to purchase 100% of its requirement of zinc bromide products, including TETRA PureFlow zinc bromide, and 75% of its requirement of Eos’ proprietary electrolyte solution from TETRA, and has provided TETRA a right of first refusal prior to entering into a supply agreement for such products from a third-party. In connection with the supply agreement, TETRA was granted a non-exclusive, non-sub-licensable, non-transferable license to Eos’s proprietary electrolyte formula, solely in connection with manufacturing and provision of Eos’ proprietary electrolyte solution to Eos.
The company is committed to pursuing low-carbon energy initiatives that leverage the company’s fluids and aqueous chemistry core competencies, the company’s significant bromine and lithium assets and technologies, and the company’s leading calcium chloride production capabilities. During 2022, the company completed the maiden inferred bromine and lithium brine resource estimation report for the company’s leased acreage in the Smackover Formation in Southwest Arkansas, as well as a front end engineering and design (‘FEED’) study for the design of a brine to bromine processing plant, pipeline and related assets.
Water & Flowback Services Division
The company’s Water & Flowback Services Division provides a wide variety of water management services that support hydraulic fracturing in unconventional well completions for domestic onshore oil and gas operators. These services include fresh and produced water analysis, treatment, and recycling, blending and distribution, storage and pit lining, transfer, engineering, and environmental risk mitigation. The Water & Flowback Services Division’s patented and patent-pending equipment and processes include advanced hydrocyclones for sand management, certain produced- and fresh-water blending technologies, and the TETRA Steel 1200, a lay-flat hose rapid deployment water transfer system. The Water & Flowback Services Division seeks to design sustainable solutions that meet the unique needs of each customer in order to maximize operational performance and efficiency and minimize the use of fresh water. These solutions include tailored ‘last mile’ infrastructure to transfer water around well pads in a safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible manner - which consists of water storage ponds, movable storage tanks, a network of water transfer lines, including poly pipe and TETRA Steel lay-flat hose, automated transfer and blending of produced water, and water treatment and recycling systems. These systems include the TETRA SwiftWater Automated Treatment (SWAT) system that chemically treats produced water through a clarification process and the TETRA oil recovery after production technology ORAPT (Orapt) mobile oil separation system that recovers oil from produced water. Automation has also been deployed across the TETRA water management portfolio, and across TETRA flowback services, to reduce health, safety and environmental risks and enhance reliability and cost-effectiveness.
The company’s Water & Flowback Services Division also provides frac flowback services, early production facilities and services, production well testing services, and other associated services, including well flow management and evaluation services that enable operators to quantify oil and gas reserves, optimize oil and gas production and minimize oil and gas reservoir damage. In certain basins, water, sand, and other abrasive materials commonly accompany the initial production of natural gas or oil, often under high-pressure and high-temperature conditions and, in some cases, from reservoirs containing high levels of hydrogen sulfide gas. The Water & Flowback Services Division provides the specialized equipment and qualified personnel to address these impediments to production. Early production services typically include sophisticated evaluation techniques for reservoir management, including unconventional shale reservoir exploitation and optimization of well workover programs. Frac flowback and production well testing services may include well control, well cleanup and laboratory analysis. These services are used in the completion process after hydraulic fracturing and in the production phase of oil and gas wells.
This Division maintains one of the largest fleets of high-pressure production testing equipment in the United States, including equipment designed to work in environments where high levels of hydrogen sulfide gas are present. The Division has domestic operating locations in Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Texas. The Division also has locations in certain countries in Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East.
Former Compression Division
The company’s former Compression Division provided compression services and equipment for natural gas and oil production, gathering, artificial lift, transmission, processing, and storage. The company’s former Compression Division’s operations were conducted through the company’s partially-owned CSI Compressco LP (‘CSI Compressco’) subsidiary. Through one of the company’s former wholly-owned subsidiaries, CSI Compressco GP LLC (f/k/a CSI Compressco GP Inc.) (the ‘general partner’), the company managed and controlled CSI Compressco, and accordingly, the company consolidated CSI Compressco’s results of operations in the company’s consolidated results of operations through January 31, 2021. On January 29, 2021, the company entered into the Purchase and Sale Agreement with Spartan Energy Partners, LP and Energy Holdco, LLC (together, ‘Spartan’) pursuant to which the company sold the general partner of CSI Compressco, including the incentive distribution rights (‘IDRs’) in CSI Compressco and approximately 23.1% of the outstanding limited partner interests in CSI Compressco. On December 31, 2023, the company held an interest in CSI Compressco consisting of approximately 3.7% of their outstanding common units at that time. The company refers to the transaction with Spartan as the ‘GP Sale.’ The company has reflected the operations of its former Compression Division as discontinued operations for all periods presented.
Suppliers
The company has a long-term supply agreement with LANXESS, AG (‘LANXESS’) under which the Completion Fluids & Products Division purchases its requirements of raw material bromine from LANXESS’ Arkansas bromine production facilities. On May 25, 2023, the company entered into the Third Amendment to Bromine Requirements Sales Agreement (the ‘Amendment’) with LANXESS, which provides for, among other things, revised volume requirements, pricing, and related terms. The Amendment was effective April 1, 2023 and was entered into in connection with the entry into a settlement agreement in the company’s arbitration with LANXESS.
Market Overview and Competition
The company’s operations are highly dependent upon the demand for, and production of, natural gas and oil in the various domestic and international locations in which the company operates.
Completion Fluids & Products Division
The company’s Completion Fluids & Products Division provides its products and services to oil and gas exploration and production companies in the United States and certain foreign markets, and to other customers that service such companies. Areas of market presence include the onshore U.S., the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, Mexico and certain countries in South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Customers with deepwater operations frequently use high volumes of CBFs, which can be subject to harsh downhole conditions, such as high pressure and high temperatures. Demand for CBF products is generally driven by offshore completion and workover activity.
Customers of the Completion Fluids & Products Division include significant oilfield service companies, major and independent U.S. and international oil and gas producers, and the U.S. and international chemical providers. The Division also sells its CBF products through various distributors.
The Completion Fluids & Products Division’s liquid and dry calcium chloride products have a wide range of uses outside the energy industry. Non-energy market segments where these products are used include water treatment, industrial, food processing, road maintenance, ice melt, agricultural, and consumer products. As part of the company’s low carbon solutions, the company produces and provides end users with zinc bromide, used in zinc-bromine batteries and energy storage. The company also sells sodium bromide into industrial water treatment markets as a biocide. In Europe, the company’s Completion Fluids & Products Division’s calcium chloride operations market, distribute, sell or offer to sell calcium chloride products in certain European industries. The company’s principal competitors in the non-energy related calcium chloride markets include Occidental Chemical Corporation and Vitro Corporation in North America and Nedmag B.V. in Europe.
Water & Flowback Services Division
The Water & Flowback Services Division provides comprehensive water management and frac flowback services to a wide-range of onshore oil and gas operators located in all active North America unconventional oil and gas basins.
The Division also provides frac flowback services, early production facilities and services, production well testing services, sand filtration, and other associated services in various domestic and international locations, including well flow management and evaluation services that enable operators to quantify oil and gas reserves, optimize oil and gas production, and minimize oil and gas reservoir production damage.
Halliburton and Schlumberger are competitors in the international production testing markets the company serves although the company provides these services to their customers on a subcontract basis from time to time. Customers for the Water & Flowback Services Division include major integrated and independent U.S. and international oil and gas producers that are active in the areas in which the company operates.
Health, Safety, and Environmental Affairs Regulations
The company’s operations in the United States are subject to various evolving environmental laws and regulations that are enforced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (‘EPA’); the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (‘BSEE’) of the U.S. Department of the Interior; the U.S. Coast Guard; and various other federal, state, and local environmental authorities.
Similar laws and regulations, designed to protect the health and safety of the company’s employees and visitors to the company’s facilities, are enforced by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and other state and local agencies and authorities. Some of the primary environmental laws and regulations applicable to the company’s operations include: (i) the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972 (the ‘Clean Water Act’); (ii) the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976; (iii) the Clean Air Act of 1977 (‘CAA’); (iv) the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (‘CERCLA’); (v) the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986; (vi) the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976; (vii) the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act of 1975; (viii) the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990; and (ix) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (‘ESA’).
History
TETRA Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1981. The company was incorporated in Delaware in 1981.
