Schlumberger pays $14.8bn for Cameron

The oilfield service companies will merge as the transaction is completed in the first quarter of 2016

Two oilfield service companies have agreed to merge, as the world’s biggest, Schlumberger, is buying Cameron for $14.8bn in cash and shares. Schlumberger’s chief executive Paal Kibsgaard said 26 August that the agreement “opened new and broader opportunities for Schlumberger… With oil prices now at lower levels, oilfield services companies that deliver innovative technology and greater integration while improving efficiency, which our customers increasingly demand, will outperform the market.” Oilfield service companies are struggling for survival as the falling oil price makes projects less and less attractive. Their customers have forced prices down by 30% in some cases. Last year, the sec