Two small companies. Two big ideas. Double-barrelled results.

That’s what Unique Oilfield Technology Services (Unotec) and Symco Drilling Fluids are all about.

“We’re small companies, but we have something a lot of big companies don’t have,” says Ari Laurell, spokesman for the two sister oilfield services companies that complement each other in serving the oilpatch. “Both of our companies have patents.”

Unotec and Symco Drilling Fluids combine advanced technical expertise and proprietary technologies for double-barrelled results that effectively reduce drilling days and eliminate drilling waste.

President/founder Paul Sicotte is flanked by Ken Anderson and Cedric Clarke.

Furthermore, the Calgary companies pride themselves as housekeepers of the oilpatch and the environment.

The two companies’ services are available independently, but they’re designed to offer the greatest value as a slick one-two punch, particularly for wells requiring oil-based mud (OBM) drilling fluids.

The bottom line?

Unotec and Symco take care of business by not only reducing costs, but by protecting the environment. “The beauty of our operations is that you make one call, and you can have the whole back end of the well where the waste comes out looked after,” says Laurell, who manages drilling waste operations.

The objective of Symco Drilling Fluids, the full-service mud company, is simple: To ensure clients drill, case and complete their wells in a manner that realizes the most profit through technical expertise and distinctive technologies.

Symco was born in 1979 out of a breakthrough in oil-based mud. Since then, it has supplied the oilpatch with the necessary drilling fluids for recovering hydrocarbons from Western Canada’s sedimentary basin.

The company has created many novel technologies that save drilling days and reduce overall drilling costs. Besides the development of a relaxed-fluid-loss OBM, Symco boasts a water and salt-free OBM called CANOIL. This patented product is the most effective mud available based on drilling speed and well-bore stability.

CANOIL has been used successfully in more than 300 wells with densities above 1500 kg/m3 and total depths of over 5,200 metres. In all of those wells, drilling speed was increased and waste minimized.

Symco has been a leader in supplying the industry with pure oil-based drilling fluids as an alternative to non-biodegradable salty waste.

“We started Unotec (in 1996) to eliminate the long-term risks and liabilities associated with hydrocarbon-contaminated waste material, introducing a system for on-site handling, treatment and biodegradation,” explains Paul Sicotte, president and founder of both companies.

“Rather than the traditional method of hauling oilfield waste to landfill sites, Unotec developed a complete On-Site Drilling Waste Management System.

“This bioremediation system uses micro-organisms such as naturally occurring bacteria and fungi to break down oilfield waste.”

Unotec is an industry leader in eliminating drilling waste, preventing contamination and providing a holistic approach to waste management through two main technologies – unique waste- handling equipment and a patented on-site biotreatment process.

In waste handling, specially designed drainage and storage tanks are used to recover and recycle expensive OBM and provide crucial barriers between the waste and the environment. The client’s waste becomes Unotec’s responsibility.

“The key to effective oil-based drilling mud management is to keep it off the ground,” says Laurell in reference to Unotec’s utilization of shale shaker catch tanks and storage tanks.

Unotec’s biotreatment process is made possible by the company’s creation and patent of the only chemical-free biotreatment process that uses organic, anti-leaching products to immobilize and detoxify oily waste on-site.

This technology is eligible for low-emissions/carbon-credit benefits under the Kyoto Protocol (the mathematical model and approval is still pending).

Besides rave reviews from customers, both companies have earned accolades.

For its environmental consciousness, Unotec was recognized as a finalist for the 2000 Small Business Emerald Awards, presented by the Alberta Foundation for Environmental Excellence. This year, Symco was nominated for the prestigious Manning Innovation Awards, recognizing its success with CANOIL.

So what’s unique about the services provided by Unotec and Symco?

“I think what’s unique about us is that, unlike a lot of people who give lip service to customers, we believe in nurturing long-term relationships,” says Sicotte.

“In long-term relationships, it can’t just be a sales-buyer relationship. We’re consultants first. That comes before sales.

“First, we investigate what the problem is. If we can solve the problem, we solve it. If we can’t solve the problem, we have the honesty and integrity to say that we can’t help you. We set up the company so our staff get bonuses based on service, not products.”

Unotec and Symco, located at Suite 100, 525 - 11th Avenue S.W., Calgary, serve some of the heavyweights of the energy industry including BP Canada, Devon Energy, Burlington Resources, EnCana Corporation and El Paso Corporation.

“We market to large companies with strict environmental policies and also small companies that can’t afford contamination,” says Laurell.

Unotec and Symco may be small companies, but they’re proving to be a big hit in the oilpatch. Two small companies. Two big ideas. Double-barrelled results.

For further information: Contact Symco Drilling Fluids at #100, 525 - 11 Ave. S.W., Calgary, AB T2R OC9; Toll-free 1-888-512-7272, 403-205-2984, Fax 403-262-9182; or Unotec at #100, 525 - 11 Ave. SW, Calgary, AB T2R OC9; Toll-free 1-888-205-3443, 403-205-3443, Fax 403-262-9182. Web site: www.unotec.com