Nabors launches robotic drilling rig in the Permian Basin

MIDLAND COUNTY, Texas (KOSA) - An oil and gas company is going robotic here in the Permian Basin.

Nabors Industries recently launched its first and only fully operating robotic rig in Midland County.

“We’re excited that it’s now in the Permian Basin,” said Travis Purvis, the Senior Vice President of Global Operations for Nabors.

The Pace-R Rig was designed to improve operational drilling efficiency and increase worker safety.

“We work in an industry that is very labor-intensive and this was a real opportunity for us to have a game-changer in terms of getting people out of harm’s way,” said Purvis.

Purvis says the technology is five years in the making, starting in Houston before moving out here to West Texas to be in the center of oil and gas production in the United States.

“The Permian basin is so important to the industry we felt like it was the perfect place to deploy the technology,” Purvis said.

Nabors launched the rig as part of a partnership with XTO Energy.

“We are very focused on sustainability and helping to be a clean partner in the energy industry space. The Pace-R it’s just another evolution of that because of the robotics technology, the smart energy system that we have on the rig in terms of engine management and reducing our carbon footprint.”

Purvis said the added technology of the rig will help to create new jobs opportunities in the oil and gas industry.

**CORRECTION**

Nabors Industries operates approximately 40 rigs in Midland.