Nabors to Invest $35 Million in Quaise Energy
The drilling contractor said the stake advances its plan to put automation and well-construction capabilities into adjacent energy markets.
Nabors Industries Ltd. (NBR) agreed to a $35 million strategic equity investment in Quaise Energy, Inc., as it looked to extend its drilling, automation and well-construction capabilities into adjacent energy markets.
The deal is a follow-on to an existing working relationship. In the second quarter of 2026, one of Nabors’ Lower 48 rigs was drilling Quaise’s Project Obsidian, the first commercial superhot geothermal development. Nabors’ Lower 48 working rig count stood at 73 after the company added five rigs that quarter.
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Anthony G. Petrello said the investment “brings together strategic commitment and one of the most compelling opportunities in geothermal energy.” He added that Quaise’s technology “closely aligns with our core strengths.”
Nabors framed the stake as part of a broader push beyond conventional contract drilling. The transaction advances its strategy to deploy differentiated drilling, automation and well-construction capabilities into attractive adjacent energy markets.
That strategy has already shown up in the Lower 48 book. Average rigs working there rose to 67.8 in the three months ended June 30, 2026, from 65.3 in the prior quarter. Second-quarter operating revenues were $815 million, up about 4% from the first quarter, and adjusted EBITDA was $222 million.
A year earlier, Nabors closed its $274 million acquisition of Parker Wellbore, adding tubular rental and running services. It later sold Quail Tools, a Parker unit, for $625 million in net proceeds. Parker synergies were on track to contribute more than $70 million of adjusted EBITDA in 2026.
Quaise’s Project Obsidian is being developed in phases in Central Oregon. Nabors’ investor materials described Phase I as a 50 MW step toward a plant that would be 1 GW once completed, using conventional drill bits and millimeter-wave drilling technology. No assurance was provided that the project would be completed as described.
The $35 million stake deepens a relationship that began with a rig on the ground. The investment pairs that field deployment with an equity position in the technology company behind the project.