Oil and gas firm Darcy Technologies said it could double its staff by the end of the year and is on the lookout for additional premises after a successful test of its first product.
The Kintore-based firm, set up in 2009, has just completed the first full test and trial of a new sand-management tool it thinks could save oil and gas firms millions.
Darcy, backed by multimillion-pound investment from private-equity outfit Epi-V, said there was an annual £870million-plus market for sand control in oil and gas wells. It hopes to grab a £250-£375million slice of that with a downhole sand-management tool it has designed over two years and has its sights set on “exponential growth” after its first sale.
Mark Presslie, business-development manager at the firm, said: “The big challenge in global oil production is sand control.
“BP estimates a third of its global production will come from wells that produce sand and that require this sort of technology.
“It is a $1.4billion market and it grows 10% a year.”
He said Darcy, employing 13 people, had worked with some majors in the North Sea and an international oilfield service firm to develop the tool. Chief executive Steve Bruce said: “Bringing new technology to market can be a challenging process, however, the support and encouragement we have received from global companies has been greatly appreciated.”
Mr Presslie said it would most likely be outside the North Sea that the tool was first used commercially.
This could be with an independent with an international footprint.
He added: “By the end of this year we expect a significant ramp up (of sales) and . . . we hope to have doubled our workforce. We would then double that within two years.”