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ncsm-20231231x10k

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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

☑ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from ______ to ______

Commission file number: 001-38071

NCS Multistage Holdings, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (281) 453-2222

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered

Common Stock, $0.01 par value NCSM Nasdaq Capital Market

Securities registered pursuant to section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐No☑

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐No☑

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer ☐ Accelerated filer ☐

Non-accelerated filer ☑ Smaller reporting company ☑

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C.7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements.☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b).☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☑

As of June 30, 2023, the aggregate market value of the common stock of the registrant held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $12.7 million (based on the closing sale price of the registrant’s common stock on that date).

As of March 6, 2024, there were 2,485,708 shares of common stock outstanding.

Portions of the definitive proxy statement for the registrant’s 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders are incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K. Such proxy statement will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission not later than 120 days after December 31, 2023.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

PART I

Item 1. Business 5

Item 1A. Risk Factors 13

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments 35

Item 1C. Cybersecurity 35

Item 2. Properties 35

Item 3. Legal Proceedings 35

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 35

PART II

Item 6. [Reserved] 36

Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 48

Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 49

Item 9A. Controls and Procedures 78

Item 9B. Other Information 78

Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections 78

PART III

Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 79

Item 11. Executive Compensation 79

Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services 79

PART IV

Item 15. Exhibit and Financial Statement Schedules 80

Signatures 83

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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Annual Report on Form 10-K (this “Form 10-K”) includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as “anticipates,” “intends,” “plans,” “seeks,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects” and similar references to future periods, or by the inclusion of forecasts or projections. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements we make regarding the outlook for our future business and financial performance, such as those contained in Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”

Forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and assumptions regarding our business, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, by their nature, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. As a result, our actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include regional, national or global political, economic, business, competitive, market and regulatory conditions and the following:

declines in the level of oil and natural gas exploration and production (“E&P”) activity in Canada, the United States and internationally;

oil and natural gas price fluctuations;

significant competition for our products and services that results inpricing pressures, reduced sales, or reduced market share;

inability to successfully implement our strategy of increasing sales of products and services into the U.S. and international markets;

loss of significant customers;

losses and liabilities from uninsured or underinsured business activities and litigation;

our failure to identify and consummate potential acquisitions;

the financial health of our customers including their ability to pay for products or services provided;

our inability to integrate or realize the expected benefits from acquisitions;

our inability to achieve suitable price increases to offset the impacts of cost inflation;

loss of any of our key suppliers or significant disruptions negatively impacting our supply chain;

risks in attracting and retaining qualified employees and key personnel;

risks resulting from the operations of our joint venture arrangement;

currency exchange rate fluctuations;

impact of severe weather conditions;

our inability to accurately predict customer demand, which may result in us holding excess or obsolete inventory;

impairment in the carrying value of long-lived assets including goodwill;

failure to comply with or changes to federal, state and local and non-U.S. laws and other regulations, including anti-corruption and environmental regulations, guidelines and regulations for the use of explosives;

change in trade policy, including the impact of tariffs;

our inability to successfully develop and implement new technologies, products and services that align with the needs of our customers, including addressing the shift to more non-traditional energy markets as part of the energy transition;

our inability to protect and maintain critical intellectual property assets or losses and liabilities from adverse decisions in intellectual property disputes;

loss of, or interruption to, our information and computer systems;

system interruptions or failures, including complications with our enterprise resource planning system (“ERP”), cybersecurity breaches, identity theft or other disruptions that could compromise our information;

our failure to establish and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting;

restrictions on the availability of our customers to obtain water essential to the drilling and hydraulic fracturing processes;

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changes in legislation or regulation governing the oil and natural gas industry, including restrictions on emissions of greenhouse gases (“GHGs”);

our inability to meet regulatory requirements for use of certain chemicals by our tracer diagnostics business;

the reduction in our asset-based revolving credit facility (“ABL Facility”) borrowing base or our inability to comply with the covenants in our debt agreements; and

our inability to obtain sufficient liquidity on reasonable terms, or at all.

See Item 1A. “Risk Factors” and Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” of this Form 10-K for a further description of these and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. For the reasons described above, we caution you against relying on any forward-looking statements, which should also be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included elsewhere in this Form 10-K. Any forward-looking statement made by us in this Form 10-K speaks only as of the date on which we make it. Factors or events that could cause our actual results to differ may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law.

Trademarks and Trade Names

We own or have the rights to use various trademarks, service marks and trade names referred to in this Form 10-K, including, among others, AirLock, MultiCycle, OST, Innovus, Terrus, Ratek, Proppex, Vecturon, Vectraset, PurpleSeal, PurpleFire, FracSure Express, PurpleSet, Repeat Precision and NCS and their respective logos. Solely for convenience, we refer to trademarks, service marks and trade names in this Form 10-K without the TM, SM and ® symbols. Such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that we will not assert, to the fullest extent permitted by law, our rights to our trademarks, service marks and trade names. Third party trademarks, service marks or trade names appearing in this Form 10-K are the property of their respective owners.

Available information

Our website address is www.ncsmultistage.com. Information that we furnish to or file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, proxy statements, and any amendments to, or exhibits included in, those reports or statements are available for download, free of charge, on our website as soon as reasonably practicable after such materials are filed with or furnished to the SEC. From time to time, we also post announcements, updates, events, investor information and presentations on our website at http://ir.ncsmultistage.com in addition to copies of all recent press releases as means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Reports and statements that we file with or furnish to the SEC, including related exhibits, are also available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. The contents of the websites referred to above are not incorporated into this filing. References to the URLs for these websites are intended to be inactive textual references only.

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PART I

Item 1. Business

Overview

NCS Multistage Holdings, Inc. (“NCS,” the “Company,” “we,” “our” or “us”) is a leading provider of highly engineered products and support services that facilitate the optimization of oil and natural gas well construction, well completions and field development strategies. We provide our products and services primarily to E&P companies for use in onshore and offshore wells, predominantly wells that have been drilled with horizontal laterals in both unconventional and conventional oil and natural gas formations. Our products and services are utilized in oil and natural gas basins throughout North America and in selected international markets, including the North Sea, the Middle East, Argentina and China. Our extensive research and development efforts are influenced and driven by the needs of our customers, allowing us to introduce innovative and commercial solutions that improve customer efficiency and profitability. We provided our products and services to over 225 customers in 2023, including leading large independent oil and natural gas companies and major oil companies.

Our primary offering is our fracturing systems products and services, which enable efficient pinpoint stimulation: the process of individually stimulating each entry point into a formation targeted by an oil or natural gas well. We began providing pinpoint stimulation products and services in 2006. Our fracturing systems products and services can be used in both cemented and open-hole wellbores and enable our customers to precisely place stimulation treatments in a more controlled and repeatable manner as compared with traditional completion techniques. Fracturing systems products and services include our casing-installed sliding sleeves and downhole frac isolation assembly. Customers typically purchase our casing-installed sliding sleeves, a consumable product that is typically cemented at intervals into the casing of the wellbore, and may utilize our services, whereby our personnel supervise the use of our downhole frac isolation assembly during completion operations. Our fracturing systems products and services are utilized in conjunction with third-party providers of pressure pumping, coiled tubing and other services.

As an extension of fracturing systems, we offer enhanced recovery systems, which enable our customers to inject water, other fluids, or gases in a controlled manner with the objective of increasing the amount of hydrocarbons produced from their assets.

We own a 50% controlling interest in Repeat Precision, LLC (“Repeat Precision”), which we consolidate. Repeat Precision sells composite frac plugs, perforating guns and related products directly to its customers and provides high-quality machining services for NCS products.

We provide tracer diagnostics services for well completion and reservoir characterization that utilize downhole chemical and radioactive tracers. Our customers utilize these services to better characterize their assets and to optimize completion designs. Chemical and radioactive tracer studies may provide a cost-effective and reliable means to determine the production profile along a lateral, assess fluid and proppant communication between wells during completions and determine the efficiency of completion designs at the stage and cluster level.

We sell products for well construction, including our casing buoyancy systems, liner hanger systems and toe initiation sleeves. Our customers utilize these products to safely and efficiently install casing and production liners, facilitate cementing operations and initiate a flow path into the formation at the commencement of stimulation operations.

Our revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 totaled $142.5 million and $155.6 million, respectively. Our net loss attributable to NCS Multistage Holdings, Inc. for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 totaled $(3.2) million and $(1.1) million, respectively. Our total assets as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 totaled $152.0 million and $138.6 million, respectively. For additional financial information by geographic area, see “Note 3. Segment and Geographic Information” of our consolidated financial statements.

Business Strategy

Our business strategy is to increase the adoption of our products and services in the United States, Canada and select international markets, to continue to be an innovator of technology and to create value for our stockholders. We intend to achieve these objectives by (i) pursuing disciplined organic growth and increasing our market share through adoption of our products and services in the United States, Canada and in select international markets, (ii) developing and introducing innovative technologies that are aligned with customer needs, (iii) maintaining financial strength and flexibility and (iv) selectively pursuing complementary mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures.

In 2017, we applied this strategy and diversified our revenue through an investment in Repeat Precision and the acquisition of Spectrum Tracer Services, LLC. In 2023, approximately 65% of our revenue was derived from fracturing systems products and services and enhanced oil recovery systems, approximately 15% was derived from Repeat Precision and approximately 10% was

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derived from each of our well construction products and tracer diagnostics services. This represents a more balanced portfolio, serving a larger addressable market than in 2016, when over 90% of our revenue was derived from fracturing systems products and services, with the remainder from well construction products.

Adoption of Pinpoint Stimulation

Traditional well completion techniques, including plug and perf and ball drop, currently account for the majority of unconventional well completions in North America. We believe that pinpoint stimulation can provide well completion efficiencies and some long term benefits not observed with traditional well completion techniques. Our ability to grow our market share, as evidenced by the percentage of horizontal wells in North America completed using our products and services, will depend in large part on the industry’s further adoption of pinpoint stimulation, our ability to continue to innovate our technology to compete against technological advances in traditional well completion techniques, and our ability to successfully compete against other providers of pinpoint stimulation products and services, including adjusting our pricing in certain markets to respond to customer demands and to competitors that may provide discounted pricing to our market.

Increasing Well Complexity and Focus on Completion Optimization

In recent years, E&P companies have drilled longer horizontal wells and completed more hydraulic fracturing stages per well to maximize the volume of hydrocarbon recoveries per well. This trend towards longer and more complex wells has resulted in us selling more sliding sleeves or composite frac plugs per well on average, which increases our revenue opportunity per well completion and has supported sales of our casing buoyancy systems. Additionally, E&P companies have become increasingly focused on well productivity through optimization of completion designs and we believe this trend may further the adoption of pinpoint stimulation, and in turn, increase the opportunity for sales of our products and services if our customers observe operational benefits and long-term production results from the application of pinpoint stimulation. This trend towards more complex well completions provides opportunities for tracer diagnostics services, which can be utilized to assess the effectiveness of various well completion techniques and well spacing strategies in support of completion and field development optimization efforts. However, as the development of unconventional resources has matured, E&P companies have become increasingly focused on operational efficiencies and lowering the cost of the wells they drill and complete. This focus on cost has led to increased competition amongst oilfield services companies, limiting pricing power, and in some cases leading to E&P companies selecting products and services primarily based on cost as opposed to technical benefits.

Products and Services

We provide highly engineered products and support services that facilitate the optimization of oil and natural gas well construction, well completions and field development strategies. Our key products and services include:

Fracturing Systems. Our fracturing systems products and services encompass our technology developed to enable efficient pinpoint stimulation, selective stage isolation and re-stimulation strategies. Pinpoint stimulation is the process of individually stimulating each entry point into an oil or natural gas formation. We believe that pinpoint stimulation provides benefits compared to traditional completion techniques. Our pinpoint stimulation solutions and refined field processes are designed to enable efficient, controlled, verifiable, and repeatable completions. Some of our products can also be utilized later in a well’s life to allow for selective stage isolation or to enhance injection efficiencies if the well is converted from a production well to an injection well.

Our fracturing systems products and services are comprised of our casing-installed sliding sleeves and our downhole frac isolation assemblies, which are typically deployed using coiled tubing and can also be deployed on threaded pipe. Our services include operating the downhole frac isolation assemblies and advising customers on optimizing completion designs and field efficiencies.

oCasing-installed sliding sleeves. Our casing-installed sliding sleeves are a consumable product, sold to our customers and integral to a well’s casing. These sliding sleeves can be used in both cemented and open-hole wellbores in vertical, deviated or horizontal wells. There is no practical limitation on the number of sleeves that can be installed in a well, and all sleeves have an inner diameter that is similar to the casing in the wellbore. Our primary model of sliding sleeves can be opened and closed multiple times throughout the life of a well. These closable sleeves provide our customers the benefit of additional completion or production options and the ability to better optimize a well’s overall performance.

During completion operations, the downhole frac isolation assembly is located in the sleeve and the inner barrel of the sleeve is shifted down, exposing the frac ports to the formation, allowing the stimulation of that stage to begin. Our closable sleeves have an inner barrel that can be shifted up to re-isolate the frac ports. These sleeves can often be re-opened or re-closed at any time, allowing our customers to selectively access or isolate segments of the wellbore. Several generations of sliding sleeves have been developed over the years, each providing improvements in functionality and reliability.

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Innovus. The Innovus line of sliding sleeves is the current generation of our fracturing sleeves designed primarily for the onshore market. This line of sleeves comes in standard duty and heavy duty (high pressure and high rate) models.

Ratek. The Ratek line of sliding sleeves has been commercialized for more stringent environments, including high torque, high burst and collapse, and high compression environments, features that are required for many offshore applications. We offer Ratek sleeves with ISO V0 and V3 ratings.

oDownhole frac isolation assembly. Our proprietary downhole frac isolation assembly is comprised of several components, including a resettable bridge plug for stage isolation, a sleeve locator to efficiently locate our sliding sleeves in the wellbore, an optional abrasive perforating sub that can create additional perforations in the casing, and gauge packages that can measure and record downhole data. The assembly tool, which is attached to coiled tubing or threaded pipe provided by a third-party, is primarily used to locate and shift our sliding sleeves open or closed. The systems provide real time-downhole pressure measurements as well as recorded pressure, temperature, and force measurements. We typically utilize the assemblies in our service to our customers and do not sell them. Our personnel operate the assemblies in coordination with other on-site service providers.

oSand jet perforating. Our sand jet perforating technology was part of the first NCS frac isolation assembly used for pinpoint stimulation. To cut access points into the formation, sand-laden fluid is pumped down the coiled tubing and through tungsten-carbide nozzles in the frac isolation assembly. The high-velocity slurry cuts a tunnel through the casing and cement and into the formation. The tunnels serve as access points for stimulation. Stimulation treatments are pumped down the annulus between the coiled tubing and the casing. This technology provides a practical option for pinpoint stimulation in wells that are already cased, such as for drilled, but uncompleted (“DUC”) wells.

oEnhanced Recovery. Our Enhanced Recovery products represent an extension of our fracturing systems product line, featuring a series of injection control devices to deliver fluid at a predetermined rate to selected stages along the wellbore. These products include valve systems to extend the life of a well by conversion from primary hydrocarbon production operations to enhanced recovery operations such as waterflood or gas injection.

Innovus Convertible. This sliding sleeve is a dual barrel version of our Innovus sleeve. After the initial fracturing and production phase, a second inner barrel can be shifted to convert the frac ports to flow paths utilized to control injection. Water or gas can then be selectively injected into the reservoir at a predetermined rate suitable for enhanced recovery operations, extending the useful life of the original completion.

Terrus System. This system includes injection control devices with customizable flow rates that can be assembled into various configurations and deployed between isolation devices to create a customized water or gas injection string for installation in existing wells.

Repeat Precision. Repeat Precision sells its high-performance Purple Seal line of composite frac plugs and bridge plugs, PurpleSet single-use disposable setting tools, FracSure Express systems that combine a Purple Seal Frac Plug with a single-use disposable setting tool, and related products directly to E&P companies. Repeat Precision began selling PurpleFire perforating guns, devices utilized to perforate a well’s casing, in late 2021. Entry into the perforating gun product line expanded Repeat Precision’s addressable market and compliments its existing completion tool technologies. Repeat Precision sells perforating guns to other oilfield services companies that act as distributors and convey the tools downhole for E&P companies. Repeat Precision also provides high-quality machining services for certain NCS products.

Tracer Diagnostics. We provide chemical and radioactive tracer diagnostics services used by our customers to assess wellbore clearance, completion performance, well production and well-to-well communication. Our technology includes fracture fluid identifier tracers (“FFIs”), particulate water-soluble tracers (“WSTs”), particulate oil-soluble tracers (“OSTs”) and reservoir natural gas tracers (“RGTs”), which enable efficient, cost-effective downhole diagnostics, providing E&P companies with critical data to better optimize field and reservoir development and production/injection performance.

Well Construction. Our well construction products are designed to allow our customers to safely and efficiently install casing and production liners, facilitate cementing operations and initiate a flow path into the formation at the commencement of stimulation operations.

oAirLock casing buoyancy system. Our AirLock casing buoyancy system facilitates landing casing strings in horizontal wells to the desired depth, while minimizing running time and surface hook-load. The AirLock assembly is installed in the casing string, allowing the vertical casing section to be filled with fluid, while the lateral section remains more air-filled. The air-filled segment significantly reduces sliding friction, while the weight of the vertical section provides the force to push the casing to depth. After the casing is landed, surface pressure is increased to release and shatter the glass or ceramic seal at a predetermined pressure, leaving an unrestricted casing bore.

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oVecturon and Vectraset liner hanger systems. Our proprietary and robust liner hanger systems are specifically designed to hang and seal the production liner in complex horizontal wells. Our liner hanger systems are fully compatible with our fracturing systems products. The liner hanger is used to distribute the weight of the liner to the supporting casing. The system can be set in the absence of a wiper plug bump.

oToe initiation sleeves. Our toe initiation sleeves are designed to provide initial formation access for multistage completions. After actuating the toe initiation sleeve, a customer can perform a casing integrity test, a pre-frac injection fall-off test, flush the wellbore to facilitate the pumping of completion tools to the toe of the well or execute the first fracturing stage for the well.

Business History

We were incorporated in Delaware on November 28, 2012, under the name “Pioneer Super Holdings, Inc.” On December 13, 2016, we changed our name to “NCS Multistage Holdings, Inc.” On May 3, 2017, we completed the initial public offering of our common stock.

Intellectual Property and Patent Protection

We have dedicated resources to the development and acquisition of new technology and products designed to optimize well construction, well completions and field development strategies, primarily for use in onshore and offshore wells drilled with horizontal laterals in both unconventional and conventional oil and natural gas formations. Our sales and earnings are influenced by our ability to successfully introduce new or improved products to the North American and international markets. Our equipment and services involve proprietary technologies, some of which are protected by patents.

We hold 65 U.S. utility patents and 46 related international utility patents, which relate to various products and services from each of our product lines, such as our casing buoyancy systems, OSTs, casing installed sliding sleeves, frac isolation assemblies, frac plug setting tools and other equipment and methods utilized in the provision of our services. Our U.S. utility patents expire between 2030 and 2040. Our international utility patents expire between 2030 and 2042.

We also have a number of U.S. and international patent applications pending. Some of these patent applications cover equipment and methods which are currently in development. The applications are in various stages of the patent prosecution process and patents may not be issued on such applications in any jurisdiction for some time, if they are issued at all.

We believe that our patents have historically been important in enabling us to compete in the market to supply our customers with our products and services. When commercially advisable, we intend to enforce, and have in the past vigorously enforced, our intellectual property rights. We are currently and, may from time to time in the future be, involved in litigation to determine the enforceability, scope and validity of our patent rights. In addition to patent rights, we employ trade secrets, or “know-how,” and other proprietary information and technology as well as intellectual property licensed from third parties.

Customers

Our customer base primarily consists of oil and natural gas producers in North America and certain international markets as well as oilfield service companies. For the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, we had over 225 and 245 customers, respectively. Our five largest customers accounted for approximately 28% and 24% of our revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. No single customer represented more than 10% of our revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. Although we believe we have a broad customer base and wide geographic coverage of operations, the loss of one or more of our significant customers could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. For additional information relating to risks regarding the loss of any of our significant customers, see Item 1A. “Risk Factors.”

Sales and Marketing

Our sales and marketing activities are performed through a technically-trained sales force. We recognize the importance of a technical marketing program in demonstrating the advantages of new technologies that offer benefits relative to established industry methodologies.

In the United States and Canada, sales of our fracturing systems products and services, enhanced recovery systems, liner hangers, toe initiation sleeves and tracer diagnostics services are made directly to E&P companies. Our customers also hire coiled tubing companies and pressure pumping services companies that work alongside us during the completion of a well. We provide our casing buoyancy systems directly to E&P companies as well as to oilfield services companies that act as distributors for this product. Although we do not typically maintain supply or service contracts with our customers, a significant portion of our sales represents

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recurring business. Repeat Precision, which maintains a sales force separate from NCS in the United States, sells its products directly to E&P companies as well as to oilfield services companies that act as distributors.

International sales are made through local NCS entities or to our local operating partners usually on a free on board or free carrier basis with a point of sale in the United States. Some of the locations in which we have operating partners or sales representatives include the Middle East and China. Our operating partners and representatives do not have authority to contractually bind our company, but market our products in their respective territories as part of their product or services offering.

We provide extensive support services and have developed proprietary methodologies for assessing and reporting the information that is collected on our downhole gauges and through tracer diagnostics evaluations.

In addition to the technical marketing effort, we occasionally engage in field trials to demonstrate the economic benefits of our products and services.

Seasonality

A substantial portion of our business is subject to seasonality, which results in quarterly variability. In Canada, we typically experience higher activity levels in the first quarter of each year, as our customers take advantage of the winter freeze to gain access to remote drilling and production areas. In the past, our revenue in Canada has declined during the second quarter due to warming weather conditions that result in thawing, softer ground, difficulty accessing well sites and road bans that curtail drilling and completion activity. Access to well sites typically improves throughout the third and fourth quarters in Canada, leading to activity levels that are higher than in the second quarter, but usually lower than activity in the first quarter. During the second quarter of 2023, access to well sites was further impacted by Canadian wildfires, a seasonal phenomenon, but more extensive in 2023 relative to prior years. These wildfires resulted in selected shut-ins of oil and natural gas production, which negatively impacted certain of our customers’ cash flows and drilling and completion activity in the second half of 2023. Our business can be impacted by a reduction in customer activity during the winter holidays in late December and early January. In some years, customers in the United States and Canada may exhaust their capital budgets prior to the end of the year, which can lead to reductions in drilling and completion activity during the fourth quarter.

Suppliers and Raw Materials

We acquire components, raw materials and parts from suppliers, including machine shops. The prices we pay for our raw materials may be affected by, among other things, energy, steel and other commodity prices, tariffs and duties on imported materials and foreign currency exchange rates. Most of the components, raw materials and parts that we use in our operations, such as steel in various forms, electronic components, chemicals and elastomers are available from many sources.

We generally try to purchase our components, raw materials and parts from multiple suppliers, so we are not dependent on any one supplier. We will generally utilize multiple machine shops for the manufacturing of our component parts so that we are not dependent on any one machine shop. In recent years, we have reduced our internal manufacturing capacity in an effort to reduce fixed costs and have relied more heavily on certain machine shops. Our suppliers are also active in multiple regions which allows us to react to changes in foreign currency exchange rates and tariffs and duties. In addition, sourcing certain product categories from Repeat Precision’s manufacturing facility in Mexico allows us to reduce our costs. See Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” for more information.

Operating Risks and Insurance

We currently carry a variety of insurance for our operations. Although we believe we currently maintain insurance coverage adequate for the risks involved, there is a risk our insurance may not be sufficient to cover any particular loss or that our insurance may not cover all losses.

Competition

The markets in which we operate are highly competitive. To be successful, we must provide services and products that meet the specific needs of E&P companies at competitive prices. We compete in all areas of our operations with a number of companies, some of which have financial and other resources greater than or comparable to ours.

We believe that we compete not only against other providers of pinpoint stimulation equipment and services, but also with companies that support the other primary means of hydraulically fracturing a horizontal well, including plug and perf and ball drop completions. We also compete with other suppliers of well construction products, enhanced recovery systems, tracer diagnostics services, composite frac plugs and perforating guns.

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Our major competitors for our completion products and services include Baker Hughes Company (“Baker Hughes”), Core Laboratories N.V., DMC Global Inc., Forum Energy Technologies, Inc., Halliburton Company, Innovex Downhole Solutions, Nine Energy Service, Inc., NOV Inc., Oil States International, Inc., Packers Plus Energy Services Inc., SLB, Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment AG and Weatherford International plc as well as a number of smaller or regional competitors.

We believe that the most significant factors influencing a customer’s decision to utilize our equipment and services are technology, service quality, safety track record, and price. While we must be competitive in our pricing, we believe our customers select our products and services based on the technical attributes of our products and equipment, the level of technical and operational service we provide before, during and after the job, and the know-how derived from our extensive operational track record.

Government Regulations

We are subject to stringent and complex federal, state, provincial and local laws and regulations governing the discharge of materials into the environment or otherwise relating to protection of worker health, safety and the environment. Compliance with these laws and regulations may require the acquisition of permits to conduct regulated activities, capital expenditures to prevent, limit or address emissions and discharges, and stringent practices to handle, recycle and dispose of certain wastes and materials. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations may result in the assessment of administrative, civil and criminal penalties, the imposition of remedial or corrective obligations, and the issuance of injunctive relief.

We believe that our operations are in substantial compliance with applicable environmental, health and safety laws and regulations. Further, we do not anticipate that compliance with existing environmental, health and safety laws and regulations will have a material effect on our consolidated financial statements. However, laws and regulations protecting the environment, health and safety generally have become more stringent in recent years and are expected to continue to do so. It is possible that we could incur substantial costs for compliance with applicable environmental, health and safety laws and regulations in the future. Moreover, it is possible that other developments, such as the adoption of stricter environmental laws, regulations, and enforcement policies, could result in additional costs or liabilities that we cannot currently quantify.

While we do not anticipate that compliance with existing environmental, health and safety laws and regulations will have a material adverse effect on our operations, our customers are subject to a wide range of such laws and regulations, which could materially and adversely affect their businesses and indirectly, through reduced demand for our products and services, have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations, including with respect to the following:

Air Emissions. The Federal Clean Air Act (the “CAA”) in the United States and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (“CEPA”) in Canada and comparable state and provincial laws regulate emissions of various air pollutants through air emissions permitting programs and the imposition of other emission control requirements. In addition, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) in the United States and Environment and Climate Change Canada (“ECCC”) in Canada have developed, and continue to develop, stringent regulations governing emissions of toxic air pollutants at specified sources. Non-compliance with air permits or other requirements of the CAA or CEPA and associated state and provincial laws and regulations can result in the imposition of administrative, civil and criminal penalties, as well as the issuance of orders or injunctions limiting or prohibiting non-compliant operations.

Water Discharges. The Federal Clean Water Act (the “CWA”) in the United States and the Fisheries Act in Canada and analogous state and provincial laws impose restrictions and strict controls with respect to the discharge of pollutants, including spills and leaks of oil and other substances, into state or provincial waters or waters of the United States or Canada. The discharge of pollutants into regulated waters is prohibited, except in accordance with the terms of a permit issued by the EPA in the U.S. or the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in Canada or an analogous state or provincial agency. Federal, state and provincial regulatory agencies can impose administrative, civil and criminal penalties as well as other enforcement mechanisms for non-compliance with discharge permits or other requirements of the CWA or the Fisheries Act and analogous state or provincial laws and regulations.

Climate Change. Governmental and public concern over the threat of climate change arising from GHG emissions is resulting in regulatory actions to address climate change in the United States and abroad. As a result, our customers are or may become subject to statutes or regulations aiming to reduce emissions of GHGs. In December 2009, the EPA determined that emissions of carbon dioxide, methane and other GHGs present an endangerment to public health and the environment because emissions of such gases are, according to the EPA, contributing to warming of the earth’s atmosphere and other climatic changes. Based on these findings, the EPA has proposed regulations restricting emissions of GHGs under existing provisions of the CAA, including establishing New Source Performance Standards (“NSPS”), a set of uniform technology-based standards for new and modified sources of air pollution, that govern emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds from new and modified oil and natural gas development and production operations. In May 2023, the EPA issued a proposed rule setting NSPS that would regulate GHGs from fossil fuel-fired power plants. If finalized, this proposed rule could have profound effects on future energy production. Most recently, in December 2023, the EPA announced a final rule that will sharply reduce the emissions of methane and other harmful air pollution from oil and natural gas operations. The final rule includes updated and strengthened standards for methane and

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other air pollutants from new, modified, and reconstructed sources, as well as guidelines to assist states in developing plans to limit methane emissions from existing sources. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 became law in August 2022, and aims to reduce GHGs, including carbon dioxide, by 40 percent by 2030. The Inflation Reduction Act provides billions of dollars in financial incentives, in the form of grants and loans, designed to facilitate financing and deployment of renewable energy projects in the United States. While the scope and future implementation of any final rules regarding such proposed NSPS, emissions requirements and financial incentives, remain uncertain, these rules could have an adverse effect on our customers and result in an indirect material adverse effect on our business.

In November 2005, the Canadian federal government added carbon dioxide to the List of Toxic Substances under CEPA allowing for the regulation of carbon dioxide emissions. In December 2018, Canada brought into force the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act (the “GGPPA”) which has two parts. First, the GGPPA sets a national price on carbon dioxide emissions at Canadian dollar (“CAD”) $65 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (“t/CO2e”) in 2023 that will increase by CAD 15 t/CO2e each year until it reaches CAD 170 t/C02e in 2030. Second, the GGPPA requires large emitters to reduce emissions through a cap-and-trade system. Each province was given the choice to either accept the federal requirement in full, create their own carbon pricing policies that meet the federal standard, or adopt a hybrid approach. Many of the provinces elected to create their own programs that are equivalent to the federal standards. In June 2022, the Canadian federal government also brought into force the Clean Fuel Regulations (the ”CFR”) which sets emission limits on a variety of liquid fuels, including gasoline and diesel. In December 2022, the federal government released a Regulatory Framework for an Oil and Gas Sector Greenhouse Gas Emissions Cap (the “Federal Cap Framework”). The Federal Cap Framework proposes regulations to cap 2030 oil and gas industry emissions at 35 to 38 percent below 2019 levels and implement a national emissions cap-and-trade system through regulations under CEPA. Also in December 2023, the Canadian federal government announced proposed regulatory amendments to reduce methane emissions in the upstream oil and gas sector by 75% below 2012 levels by 2030.

Various U.S. states or groups of states also have adopted or considered adopting legislation, regulations or other governmental actions focused on reducing GHG emissions, including cap and trade programs, carbon taxes, restricting methane emissions from exploration and production activities, reporting and tracking initiatives and renewable portfolio standards. At the international level, the United States and Canada are parties to the United Nations-sponsored Paris Agreement, a non-binding agreement for nations to limit their GHG emissions through individually-determined reduction goals. Moreover, at the December 2023, COP28 climate summit, representatives from nearly 200 countries agreed to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems so as to achieve net zero by 2050. Although it is not possible at this time to predict how any legal requirements imposed following the implementation of the Paris Agreement, subsequent international negotiations or otherwise that may be adopted or issued to address GHG emissions, would impact our business or that of our customers, any such future laws, regulations or legal requirements imposing reporting or permitting obligations on, or limiting emissions of GHGs from, oil and natural gas exploration activities could require our customers to incur costs to reduce emissions of GHGs associated with their operations. In addition, substantial limitations on GHG emissions could adversely affect demand for the oil and natural gas our customers produce.

Non-Hazardous and Hazardous Wastes. The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”) in the United States and CEPA in Canada and comparable state and provincial laws control the management and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous waste. These laws and regulations govern the generation, storage, treatment, transfer and disposal of wastes that our customers generate. Drilling fluids, produced waters, and most of the other wastes associated with the exploration, development, and production of oil or natural gas, if properly handled, are currently exempt from regulation as hazardous waste under RCRA and, instead, are regulated under RCRA’s less stringent non-hazardous waste provisions, state laws or other federal laws. It is possible, however, that certain oil and natural gas drilling and production wastes now classified as non-hazardous could be classified as hazardous wastes in the future. A loss of the RCRA exemption for drilling fluids, produced waters and related wastes could result in an increase in our customers’ costs to manage and dispose of generated wastes and a corresponding decrease in their drilling operations, which developments could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Contamination.The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, and comparable state laws, impose joint and several liability, without regard to fault or legality of conduct, on classes of persons who are considered to be responsible for the release of a hazardous substance into the environment. These persons include the owner or operator of the site where the release occurred, and anyone who disposed or arranged for the disposal of a hazardous substance released at the site. In addition, it is not uncommon for neighboring landowners and other third-parties to file claims for personal injury and property damage allegedly caused by hazardous substances released into the environment. In Canada, provincial laws also impose joint and several liability on the current and past owners of contaminated sites and on persons who own or have change, management and control of contaminating substances released into the environment.

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Occupational Health and Safety. We are subject to a number of federal and state and provincial laws and regulations, including the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act and comparable state and provincial statutes, establishing requirements to protect the health and safety of workers. Substantial fines and penalties can be imposed and orders or injunctions limiting or prohibiting certain operations may be issued in connection with any failure to comply with laws and regulations relating to worker health and safety.

Radioactive Materials.Part of our business involves the use of radioactive tracers, typically consisting of three standard isotopes (Iridium 192, Scandium 46 and Antimony 124), to help determine the existence of fractures within a well formation. The use of these materials requires us to obtain and comply with radioactive materials licenses issued by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (“NRC”) or its counterparts in the states where we perform these services if they are among the states to which the NRC has delegated its regulatory authority pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act (so-called “Agreement States”). Under the terms of these licenses, we are required to train designated personnel, maintain records, submit periodic reports, ensure the safety and reliability of related equipment and storage facilities, conduct radiation safety monitoring, and ensure the proper disposal of materials and equipment at the end of their useful lives. In the event we fail to adequately comply with these requirements, we could be subject to enforcement action, which could include fines, injunctive relief, or the revocation of our licenses.

In addition, the oil and natural gas industry is extensively regulated by numerous federal, state, provincial and local authorities, including with respect to permitting for the drilling of wells, pipeline and liquefied natural gas export infrastructure, drilling bonds and operations reporting. Legislation and regulation affecting the oil and natural gas industry is frequently under review for amendment or expansion, which can increase the regulatory burden. Failure to comply with laws and regulations can result in substantial fines and penalties. In addition, the effect of these regulations may be to increase the cost of oil and natural gas for E&P companies, which could have a material adverse effect on our customers and indirectly materially and adversely affect our business. Although changes to the regulatory burden on the oil and natural gas industry could affect the demand for our services, we would not expect to be affected any differently or to any greater or lesser extent than other companies in the industry with similar operations.

We supply equipment and services to customers in the oil and natural gas industry conducting hydraulic fracturing operations. Although we do not directly engage in hydraulic fracturing activities, our customers purchase our products and services for use in their hydraulic fracturing activities. Hydraulic fracturing is typically regulated by state oil and natural gas commissions and similar agencies in the United States and provincial energy regulators in Canada. Some states and provinces have adopted, and other states are considering adopting, regulations that could impose new or more stringent permitting, disclosure or well construction requirements on hydraulic fracturing operations. States and provinces could also elect to prohibit high volume hydraulic fracturing altogether, following the approach taken by the State of New York in 2015 and Quebec in 2013. California continues taking steps to ban hydraulic fracturing on state-permitted lands in 2024. Aside from state and provincial laws, local land use restrictions may restrict drilling in general or hydraulic fracturing in particular. Municipalities may adopt local ordinances attempting to prohibit hydraulic fracturing altogether or, at a minimum, allow such fracturing processes within their jurisdictions to proceed but regulating the time, place and manner of those processes. In addition, the U.S. federal government can limit hydraulic fracturing activities on federal lands through permitting, including by limiting the amount of lands available to lease or increasing royalty rates. The current administration cancelled the construction permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline, which would have transported Canadian oil to the Gulf Coast. We do not currently expect that the recent executive branch actions regarding leases on public land or the cancellation of the Keystone XL oil pipeline will have a material impact on our business in the short term. Various studies also have been conducted or are currently underway by the EPA, and other federal agencies concerning the potential environmental impacts of hydraulic fracturing activities. State, provincial and federal regulatory agencies have recently focused on a possible connection between the operation of injection wells used for oil and natural gas waste disposal and seismic activity. Similar concerns have been raised that hydraulic fracturing may also contribute to seismic activity. At the same time, certain environmental groups have suggested that additional laws may be needed to more closely and uniformly limit or otherwise regulate the hydraulic fracturing process, and legislation has been proposed by some members of Congress to provide for such regulation.

The adoption of new laws or regulations at the federal, state or provincial levels prohibiting, limiting or otherwise regulating the hydraulic fracturing process could make it more difficult, or even impossible, to complete oil and natural gas wells, increase our customers’ costs of compliance and doing business, and otherwise adversely affect the hydraulic fracturing services they perform, which could negatively impact demand for our products and services. In addition, heightened political, regulatory, and public scrutiny of hydraulic fracturing practices could expose us or our customers to increased legal and regulatory proceedings, which could be time-consuming, costly, or result in substantial legal liability or significant reputational harm. We could be directly affected by adverse litigation involving us, or indirectly affected if the cost of compliance limits the ability of our customers to operate. Such costs and scrutiny could directly or indirectly, through reduced demand for our products and services, have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Employees

As of December 31, 2023, we had 243 employees of which 241 are full-time employees. As of such date, 125 of our employees were based in the United States, 107 were based in Canada and 11 were based outside of North America. Our international operations,

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with the exception of our Argentinean and certain North Sea operations, are currently serviced by employees operating out of the United States and Canada. In addition, as of December 31, 2023, our consolidated joint venture, Repeat Precision, had 180 employees, 27 of which are based in the United States and 153 of which are based in Mexico. We are not a party to any collective bargaining agreements in North America, and we consider our relations with our employees to be good.

Item 1A. Risk Factors

Described below are certain risks that we believe apply to our business and the industry in which we operate. You should carefully consider each of the following risk factors in conjunction with other information provided in this Form 10-K and in our other public disclosures. The risks described below highlight potential events, trends or other circumstances that could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity or access to sources of financing, and consequently, the market value of our common stock. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. All forward-looking statements made by us or on our behalf are qualified by the risks described below.

RISK FACTORS SUMMARY

You should carefully consider the information set forth below before deciding whether to invest in our securities. Below is a summary of material risks associated with an investment in our securities.

Risks Related to Our Business and the Oil and Natural Gas Industry

Our business depends on the levels of expenditures by companies in the oil and natural gas industry and particularly on the level of E&P activity in Canada, the United States and internationally.

The cyclicality of the oil and natural gas industry may cause our results of operations to fluctuate.

Competition within our industry may adversely affect our ability to market our services.

We may not be able to successfully implement our strategy of increasing sales of our products and services for use in the U.S. or select international markets.

The loss of any of our significant customers, or their failure to pay the amounts they owe us, could cause our revenue and cash flow to decline substantially.

The products and services we provide are used in operations that are subject to potential hazards inherent in the oil and natural gas industry and, as a result, we are exposed to potential liabilities that may affect our financial condition and reputation.

Losses and liabilities from operating activities could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Explosive incidents arising out of dangerous materials used in our business could disrupt operations and result in bodily injuries and property damages.

We are exposed to counterparty credit risk.

The growth of our business through acquisitions or strategic partnerships exposes us to various risks, including identifying suitable opportunities and integrating businesses, assets and personnel.

We may be adversely affected by the effects of inflation.

Disruptions or delays involving our suppliers or increases in prices for the components, raw materials and parts that we obtain from our suppliers could have an adverse effect on our business.

Our success may depend on the continued service and availability of key personnel.

We conduct a portion of our operations through the Repeat Precision joint venture, which subjects us to additional risks that could adversely affect the success of these operations, which could adversely impact our business, financial position and results of operations.

A significant amount of our revenue generated is denominated in CAD and could be negatively impacted by currency fluctuations.

Our operations may be limited or disrupted during severe weather conditions.

We may hold excess or obsolete inventory or have insufficient inventory.

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We could be subject to additional income tax liabilities.

Our operations and our customers’ operations are subject to a variety of governmental laws and regulations.

Policy changes affecting international trade could adversely impact our business.

Risks Related to Technology Advancement and Cybersecurity

Our success depends on our ability to develop and implement new technologies, products and services that align with the needs of our customers.

Advancements in drilling and well completion technologies and processes could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our competitors may infringe upon, misappropriate, violate or challenge the validity or enforceability of our intellectual property.

We may be adversely affected by disputes regarding intellectual property rights of third parties.

We may be unable to attract and retain skilled and technically knowledgeable employees.

Loss of our information and computer systems could adversely affect our business.

A cyber incident could occur and result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.

Risks Related to Environmental and Regulatory Matters

Restrictions on the ability of our customers to obtain water may have a material adverse effect on our business.

The adoption of climate change legislation or regulations restricting emissions of GHGs, and associated litigation, could result in increased compliance or operating costs, limit the areas in which our customers may conduct E&P activities, and reduce demand for oil and natural gas.

Federal, state and provincial legislative and regulatory initiatives relating to hydraulic fracturing could result in increased costs and additional operating restrictions or delays on our customers.

Restrictions on drilling activities intended to protect certain species of wildlife may adversely affect the ability of our customers to conduct drilling activities in some of the areas where we operate.

We may not be able to meet applicable regulatory requirements for our use of certain chemicals by our tracer diagnostics business.

Risks Relating to Our Indebtedness

Our outstanding indebtedness could adversely affect our financial condition and our ability to operate our business, and we may not be able to generate sufficient cash flows to meet our debt service obligations.

We and our subsidiaries may be able to incur substantial indebtedness.

Restrictive covenants in the agreement governing our ABL Facility or other indebtedness may restrict our ability to pursue our business strategies.

Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Common Stock

We are controlled by the funds controlled by Advent International Corporation (“Advent”), whose interests may differ from those of our public stockholders.

Future sales of our common stock, or the perception in the public markets that these sales may occur, could cause the market price for our common stock to decline.

Anti-takeover protections in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our amended and restated bylaws or our contractual obligations may discourage or prevent a takeover of our company, even if an acquisition would be beneficial to our stockholders.

We are a “smaller reporting company” and have elected to comply with reduced reporting requirements, which could make our common stock less attractive to investors.

We may identify material weaknesses or otherwise fail to maintain an effective system of internal controls.

Public and investor sentiment towards climate change, fossil fuels and other environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) matters could adversely affect availability of capital and the price of our common stock.

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Risks Related to Our Business and the Oil and Natural Gas Industry

Our business depends on the levels of expenditures by companies in the oil and natural gas industry and particularly on the level of E&P activity in Canada, the United States and internationally.

Demand for our products and services depends substantially on the level of expenditures by companies in the oil and natural gas industry. These expenditures are generally dependent on our customers’ views of future oil and natural gas prices and are sensitive to our customers’ views of future economic growth and the resulting impact on demand for oil and natural gas. Declines, as well as anticipated declines, in oil and natural gas prices could result in project modifications, delays or cancellations, general business disruptions, and delays in payment of, or nonpayment of, amounts that are owed to us. In addition, more stable or higher commodity prices do not necessarily translate to a higher level of expenditures by companies in the oil and natural gas industry. For example, in recent years, investors in E&P companies have been prioritizing free cash flow and return of capital to shareholders over production growth, leading to lower expenditures. E&P companies require significant capital to drill and complete wells and it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to access capital. These trends may continue, even if commodity prices increase.

Many factors over which we have no control affect the supply of and demand for, and our customers’ willingness to explore, develop and produce oil and natural gas, and therefore, influence the volumes we can sell and the prices we can charge for our products and services, including:

the global supply of and demand for oil and natural gas;

the level of prices, and expectations about future prices, of oil and natural gas;

the level of global oil and natural gas E&P capital spending;

the cost of exploring for, developing, producing and delivering oil and natural gas, which may increase as a result of inflation in wages, materials, components, parts, equipment and other costs borne by suppliers to E&P companies;

the expected decline rates of current production;

the price and quantity of foreign imports;

political and economic conditions in oil and natural gas producing countries, including the United States, Canada, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, South America and Russia;

actions by OPEC and certain other countries, including Russia (informally known as “OPEC+”), with respect to oil production levels and announcements of potential changes in such levels;

speculative trading in crude oil and natural gas derivative contracts;

the level of consumer product demand;

the discovery rates of new oil and natural gas reserves;

contractions in the credit market;

the strength or weakness of the United States dollar (“USD”);

available pipeline and other transportation capacity;

the levels of oil and natural gas storage;

weather conditions, natural disasters, including earthquakes, wildfires, floods, drought, hurricanes and tornadoes, and health concerns and epidemics;

political instability in oil and natural gas producing countries;

domestic and foreign tax policy;

domestic and foreign governmental approvals and regulatory requirements and conditions;

the continued threat of terrorism and the impact of military and other action, including military action in the Middle East or Ukraine;

technological advances affecting energy demand, generation and consumption;

the proximity and capacity of oil and natural gas pipelines and other transportation facilities;

alternative energy requirements or technological advances and the demand and availability of alternative energy sources;

energy conservation measures, including increased focus by the investment community on sustainability practices in the oil and natural gas industry;

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climate change legislation or regulations restricting emissions of greenhouse gases and related divestment and other efforts;

the ability of oil and natural gas producers to raise equity capital and debt financing;

interest rates and the cost of capital for E&P companies;

merger and divestiture activity among oil and natural gas producers;

cyclical/seasonal business and dependence upon spending of our customers;

competition among oilfield service and equipment providers; and

overall domestic and global economic conditions.

These factors and the volatility of the energy markets make it difficult to predict future oil and natural gas price movements. A decline in oil and natural gas prices may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, regardless of the macro commodity price environment, our current or prospective customers may experience certain constraints that disproportionately impact their business and reduce their expenditures. Also, should a low commodity price environment impact our customers’ expenditures, we could encounter difficulties such as an inability to access needed capital on attractive terms or at all, the incurrence of impairment charges, a reduction in our borrowing capacity under our ABL Facility, a need to reduce our capital spending and other similar impacts, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The cyclicality of the oil and natural gas industry may cause our results of operations to fluctuate.

We derive our revenues from companies engaged in oil and natural gas exploration and production, a historically cyclical industry with levels of activity that are significantly affected by the levels and volatility of oil and natural gas prices. We have experienced, and may in the future experience, significant fluctuations in operating results as a result of the reactions of our customers to changes in oil and natural gas prices. For example, prolonged low commodity prices experienced by the oil and natural gas industry during 2015, 2016 and recently in 2020, combined with adverse changes in the capital and credit markets, caused many exploration and production companies to reduce their capital budgets and drilling activity. This resulted in a significant decline in demand for oilfield services and products and adversely impacted the volume of products and services oilfield services companies could sell, and the prices oilfield services companies could charge for their products and services. In addition, a majority of the revenue we earn is based upon product sales at market pricing. By selling our products at market pricing, we are exposed to the risks of a rapid reduction in prices and resulting volatility in our revenues.

Competition within our industry may adversely affect our ability to market our services.

The oilfield services industry is highly competitive.The principal competitive factors impacting sales of our products are technology, service quality, safety track record and price. The market is also fragmented and includes numerous small companies capable of competing effectively in our markets on a local basis, as well as several large companies that possess substantially greater financial and other resources than we do. Our larger competitors’ greater resources could allow those competitors to compete more effectively than we can. For instance, our larger competitors may offer products at below-market prices or bundle ancillary products and services at no additional cost to our customers. We compete with large national and multi-national companies that have longer operating histories, greater financial, technical and other resources and greater name recognition than we do. Several of our competitors provide a broader array of products and services and have a stronger presence in more geographic markets.

Some jobs are awarded on a bid basis, which further increases competition based on price. Pricing is one of the primary factors in determining which qualified contractor is awarded a job. The competitive environment may be further intensified by mergers and acquisitions among oil and natural gas companies or other events that have the effect of reducing the number of available customers. If competition remains the same or increases because of future industry downturns, we may be required to lower our prices, which would adversely affect our results of operations. In the future, we may lose market share or be unable to maintain or increase prices for our products and services or may be unable to acquire or consummate additional business opportunities, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our competitors may be able to respond more quickly to new or emerging technologies and services and changes in customer requirements. The amount of equipment available may exceed demand, which could result in active price competition. In addition, competition among oilfield equipment providers is affected by each provider’s reputation for safety and quality. We cannot assure that we will be able to maintain our competitive position.

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We may not be able to successfully implement our strategy of increasing sales of our products and services for use in the U.S. or select international markets.

A key component of our growth strategy is to increase our market share in the U.S. and international markets. In Canada, we have several product and service offerings where we have established a higher market share through a long-standing operating history. In the U.S. and international markets, we have been selling for a shorter period of time and thus must convince potential customers about either the value of the emerging technology compared to traditional methods or, in the case of more mature technology offerings, our differentiated benefits.

In the United States, we sell a variety of products and services. To sell the fracturing systems products and services we must convince customers of the benefits of pinpoint stimulation as compared to traditional well completion techniques, which remain the prevailing methods to complete wells in the United States. In many circumstances, it has been and may continue to be difficult convincing potential customers of the benefits of our technologies relative to traditional well completion techniques, whether it be for more specific targeted uses or widespread adoption. For the other product and service categories that we sell in the United States, we often compete in markets with many other competitors where we have more limited technology differentiation which makes it more difficult to increase market share, as further described in the above risk factor —“Competition within our industry may adversely affect our ability to market our services.”

In international markets, we sell a variety of products and services and we often compete with large national and multi-national companies that have substantially longer operating histories in the geographic markets. International clients may be less likely to utilize smaller oilfield service providers as they prefer to leverage fewer providers with a proven track record in their market. In addition, our international operations and global expansion strategy are subject to general risks related to such operations, including:

political, social and economic instability and disruptions;

export controls, economic sanctions, embargoes, import controls, duties and tariffs, and other trade restrictions;

limitations on ownership and on repatriation or dividend of earnings;

transportation delays and interruptions;

labor unrest and current and changing regulatory environments;

increased compliance costs, including costs associated with disclosure requirements and related due diligence;

difficulties in staffing and managing multi-national operations;

limitations on our ability to enforce legal rights and remedies; and

fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates.

If we are unable to successfully manage the risks associated with expanding our global business or adequately manage operational risks of our existing international operations, these risks could have a material adverse effect on our growth strategy into new geographical markets, our reputation, our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.

A single customer constituted 7% and 6% of our revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. The loss of any of our significant customers, or their failure to pay the amounts they owe us, could cause our revenue and cash flow to decline substantially.

A single customer accounted for approximately 7% and 6% of our revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Additionally, our five largest customers accounted for approximately 28% and 24% of our revenue for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. It is likely that we will continue to derive a significant portion of our revenue from these customers in the near future. There has been an increase in consolidation amongst E&P companies and, as a result, we have experienced a reduction in spending with certain large customers and may continue to further experience a reduction in future business with consolidating customers if combined capital spending is reduced, if procurement strategies are altered, or if the counterparty in the consolidation has other preferred vendors for the products and services we have been providing. If any large customers decided not to continue to use our products and services for any reason, our revenue would decline, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, we are subject to credit risk due to the concentration of our customer base. Any nonperformance by these customers, including their failure to pay the amounts they owe us, either as a result of changes in general financial and economic conditions, conditions in the oil and natural gas industry or otherwise, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

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The products and services we provide are used in operations that are subject to potential hazards inherent in the oil and natural gas industry, including claims for personal injury and property damage, and, as a result, we are exposed to potential liabilities that may affect our financial condition and reputation.

The products and services we provide are used in potentially hazardous drilling, completion and production applications in the oil and natural gas industry where an accident or a failure of a product can potentially have catastrophic consequences. Risks inherent to these applications, such as equipment malfunctions and failures, equipment misuse and defects, explosions, blowouts and uncontrollable flows of oil, natural gas or well fluids and natural disasters can cause personal injury, loss of life, suspension of operations, damage to formations, damage to facilities, business interruption and damage to or destruction of property, surface water and drinking water resources, equipment and the environment. If our products or services fail to meet specifications or are involved in accidents or failures, we could face warranty, contract or other litigation claims, which could expose us to substantial liability for personal injury, wrongful death, property damage, pollution and other environmental damages. We operate with many of our customers under contracts where we endeavor to allocate potential liabilities and risks between the parties, which may result in material liability to us. In addition, despite our intention to generally allocate risk under contracts, we might not have any contract arrangement which allocates responsibility or may operate under more onerous terms and conditions proposed by customer. If we are operating under a contract, we may not succeed in enforcing such contractual allocation, might incur an unforeseen liability falling outside the scope of such allocation or may be required to enter into a contract with terms that are unfavorable to us. As a result, we may incur substantial losses which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. For instance, in the past, we have been subject to claims for product and service issues alleged by other parties that resulted in significant judgments and settlements that were borne, in all material respects, by our insurance carrier. In addition, the frequency and severity of such incidents will affect operating costs, insurability and relationships with customers, employees and regulators. In particular, our customers may elect not to purchase our services if they view our safety record as unacceptable, which could cause us to lose customers and substantial revenues.

Losses and liabilities from operating activities could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our insurance policies may not be adequate to cover all liabilities. Our operations are subject to significant hazards often found in the oil and natural gas industry. Claims for loss of oil and natural gas production and damage to formations occur in the ordinary course of business in the well services industry. Litigation arising from an incident up to a catastrophic occurrence at a location where our products and services are being used may result in our being named as a defendant in lawsuits asserting large claims. As described in the risk factor above, our contracts may require us to indemnify our customers for damage or loss arising out of our sale of goods or performance of our work, regardless of fault, and provide for warranties for products and workmanship and we may also be required to name the customer and others as an additional insured under our insurance policies. We maintain limited insurance coverage against these and other risks associated with our business. Any insurance obtained by us may not be adequate to cover any losses or liabilities and, particularly in the event that we must submit larger claims to insurance providers, this insurance may not continue to be available at all or on terms which are acceptable to us. Recently we had a judgment rendered against us that could have resulted in a requirement to pay above our insurance policy limits. Even though this matter was settled below our insurance policy limits with the Company not paying any cash towards settlement, there can be no assurance that any future matter would have similar results. Insurance rates have in the past been subject to wide fluctuation and changes in coverage could result in less coverage, increases in cost or higher deductibles and retentions. Moreover, even if we are successful in defending a claim, it could be time-consuming and costly to defend. Furthermore, the operational insurance coverage we maintain for our business may not fully insure us against all risks, either because insurance is not available or because of the high premium costs relative to perceived risk. For example, our insurance does not typically cover losses and liabilities related to intellectual property or general breach of contract claims or pandemics. Also, our customers, suppliers or other service providers may not carry adequate insurance to cover any losses or liabilities where we may be indemnified by such party. Liabilities for which we are not insured, or which exceed the policy limits of our applicable insurance, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Explosive incidents arising out of dangerous materials used in our business could disrupt operations and result in bodily injuries and property damages, which occurrences could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We use explosive materials in our manufacturing processes and products. The use of explosives is an inherently dangerous activity. These activities subject us to extensive environmental and health and safety laws and regulations including guidelines and regulations for the purchase, manufacture, handling, transport, import, storage and use of explosives issued by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety regulations set forth by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Safety Library Publications of the Institute of Makers of Explosives and in Canada under the Explosive Act and the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations. Despite our use of specialized facilities to store and handle dangerous materials and our employee training programs, the storage and handling of explosive materials could result in explosive incidents that temporarily shut down or otherwise disrupt our or our customers’ operations or could cause restrictions, delays or cancellations in the delivery of our services. It is possible that such an explosion could result in death or significant injuries to employees and other persons. Material

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property damage to us, our customers and third parties arising from an explosion or resulting fire could also occur. Any explosion or related environmental law violation could expose us to adverse publicity and liability for damages or cause production restrictions, delays or cancellations, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Moreover, failure to comply with applicable requirements or the occurrence of an explosive incident may also result in the loss of our licenses to store and handle explosives, which would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are exposed to counterparty credit risk. Nonpayment and nonperformance by our customers, suppliers or vendors could adversely impact our operations, cash flows and financial condition.

Weak economic conditions, volatility in the banking sector and/or widespread financial distress could reduce the liquidity of our customers, suppliers or vendors making it more difficult for them to meet their obligations to us. Severe financial problems encountered by our customers, suppliers and vendors could limit our ability to collect amounts owed to us or to enforce the performance of obligations owed to us under contractual arrangements and/or limit our ability to enter into future contractual arrangements with such customers, suppliers or vendors. In the event that any of our customers was to enter into bankruptcy, we could lose all or a portion of the amounts owed to us by such customer, and we may be forced to cancel all or a portion of our contracts with such customer at significant expense to us.

The growth of our business through acquisitions or strategic partnerships exposes us to various risks, including identifying suitable opportunities and integrating businesses, assets and personnel.

We evaluate and pursue acquisitions on a regular basis in order to expand and diversify our business. We may also form strategic partnerships with third parties that we believe will complement or augment our existing business. We may not be able to identify any potential acquisition or strategic partnership candidates, consummate any acquisitions or enter into any strategic partnerships, and any future acquisitions or strategic partnerships may not be successfully integrated or may not be advantageous to us. In addition, we may not have or be able to obtain sufficient capital resources to complete any acquisitions. Entities we acquire may not achieve the revenue and earnings we anticipate or their liabilities may exceed our expectations. We could face integration issues pertaining to the internal controls and operational functions of the acquired companies and we also could fail to realize cost efficiencies or synergies that we anticipated when selecting our acquisition candidates. Client dissatisfaction or performance problems with a particular acquired entity or resulting from a strategic partnership could have a material adverse effect on our reputation as a whole. We may be unable to profitably manage any acquired entities, or we may fail to integrate them successfully without incurring substantial expenses, delays or other problems. We may not achieve the anticipated benefits from our acquisitions or any of the strategic partnerships we form. In addition, business acquisitions and strategic partnerships involve a number of risks that could affect our business, financial condition and results of operations, including but not limited to:

our ability to integrate or implement operational, accounting and technology policies, processes and systems;

our ability to integrate personnel and human resources systems as well as the cultures of each of the acquired businesses;

our ability to implement our business plan for the acquired business;

transition of operations, users and clients to our existing platforms or the integration of data, systems and technology platforms with ours;

compliance with regulatory requirements and avoiding potential conflicts of interest in markets that we serve;

diversion of management’s attention and other resources;

our ability to retain or replace key personnel;

our ability to maintain relationships with the customers of the acquired business or a strategic partner and further develop the acquired business or the business of our strategic partner;

our ability to cross-sell our products and services and products and services of the acquired businesses or strategic partners to our respective clients;

entry into unfamiliar markets;

assumption of unanticipated legal or financial liabilities and/or negative publicity related to prior acts by the acquired entity;

litigation or other claims in connection with the acquired company, including claims from terminated employees, clients, former stockholders or third parties;

misuse of intellectual property by our strategic partners;

disagreements with strategic partners or a misalignment of incentives within any strategic partnership;

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becoming subject to increased regulation as a result of an acquisition;

becoming significantly leveraged as a result of incurring debt to finance an acquisition;

unanticipated operating, accounting or management difficulties in connection with the acquired entities; and

impairment of acquired intangible assets, including goodwill, and dilution to our earnings per share.

If we fail to successfully integrate the businesses that we acquire or strategic partnerships that we enter into, we may not realize any of the benefits we anticipate in connection with the acquisitions or partnerships, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may be adversely affected by the effects of inflation.

Inflation in wages, materials, components, parts, equipment and other costs has the potential to adversely affect our results of operations, cash flows and financial position by increasing our overall cost structure, particularly if we are unable to achieve commensurate increases in the prices we charge our customers for our products and services. In addition, higher interest rates may be implemented by governments as monetary policy to combat inflation, which could result in higher borrowing costs, supply shortages, increased costs of labor, unfavorable movements in exchange rates and other similar effects.

Disruptions or delays involving our suppliers or increases in prices for the components, raw materials and parts that we obtain from our suppliers could have a material adverse effect on our business and consolidated results of operations.

Our operations are dependent upon the continued ability of our suppliers to deliver the components, raw materials and parts that we need to manufacture our products. In some instances, we purchase components, raw materials and parts that are ultimately derived from a single source and may be at an increased risk for supply disruptions. Any number of factors, including labor disruptions, military activity, catastrophic weather events, the occurrence of a pandemic or other widespread illness, contractual or other disputes, unfavorable economic or industry conditions, transportation disruptions, delivery delays or other performance problems or financial difficulties or solvency problems, have from time to time, and could in the future disrupt our suppliers’ operations and performance, which could, in turn, lead to uncertainty in our supply chain or cause supply disruptions for us and disrupt our operations.

Disruptions in operations or damages to a location where we or our vendors manufacture and assemble our products could reduce our ability to produce products and satisfy customer demand. In particular, we have offices and manufacturing operations in Houston, Texas and Tulsa, Oklahoma. These offices and facilities are particularly susceptible to severe weather events, including tropical storms, hurricanes, and tornados, which have in the past and may in the future disrupt our operations. In addition, our Repeat Precision joint venture operates one manufacturing facility in Mexico. There are several risks associated with doing business in Mexico, including, exposure to local economic and political conditions, export and import restrictions, tariffs and related duty-free rules, and the potential for shortages of labor. The realization of any of these risks could disrupt our supply chain and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Our success may depend on the continued service and availability of key personnel.

Our success and future growth is dependent upon the ability of our executive officers, senior managers and other key personnel to operate and manage our business and execute on our growth strategies successfully. We may be unable to continue to attract and retain our executive officers, senior managers or other key personnel. We may incur increased expenses in connection with the hiring, promotion, retention or replacement of any of these individuals. These labor costs include the cost of providing employee benefits in the United States, Canada and other foreign jurisdictions, including severance benefits. The loss of the services of any of our key personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We conduct a portion of our operations through the Repeat Precision joint venture, which subjects us to additional risks that could adversely affect the success of these operations and the ability of Repeat Precision to make cash distributions to us, which could adversely impact our business, financial position and results of operations.

We conduct a portion of our operations through the Repeat Precision joint venture and may also enter into other joint venture arrangements in the future. Our joint venture arrangements may involve risks not otherwise present when operating assets directly. For example, we may:

share approval rights over certain major decisions and may not be able to fully control decisions, including cash distributions to us from the joint venture;

devote significant management time to the requirements of, and matters relating to, the joint ventures;

engage in disputes that may result in delays, litigation or operational impasses;

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incur liabilities as a result of an action taken by our joint venture partner, including leaving us liable for the other joint venture partners’ shares of joint venture liabilities;

not receive credit for additional borrowing capacity under the borrowing base of our ABL Facility, as in the case with the Repeat Precision joint venture;

breach a covenant or restriction in the promissory note entered into by Repeat Precision (the “Repeat Precision Promissory Note”);

have different systems or controls at the joint venture, which may subject us to additional risks and vulnerabilities; and

not carry adequate insurance policies that fully cover loss or damage incurred by both us and our joint venture partners in certain circumstances.

The risks described above or the failure to continue our joint venture could adversely affect our ability to transact the business that is the subject of such joint venture and our ability to receive cash distributions from the joint venture, which would in turn adversely affect our business, financial position and results of operations.

A significant amount of our revenue generated is denominated in CAD and could be negatively impacted by currency fluctuations.

Approximately 69% of our revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023 was generated in Canada, which may expose us to currency fluctuations. Changes in currency exchange rates, particularly with respect to CAD, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial position. As we had a trade accounts receivable balance in Canadian dollars of $20.9 million as of December 31, 2023, a 10% movement in exchange rates for CAD relative to USD would increase or decrease the resulting trade accounts receivable balance by $1.6 million in USD. We have not hedged our exposure to changes in foreign currency exchange rates and, as a result, could incur significant and unanticipated transaction gains and losses.

Our operations may be limited or disrupted in certain parts of the continental United States, Canada and the North Sea during severe weather conditions, including severe winters or wildfires, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We primarily provide products and services to E&P companies that operate in basins throughout the continental United States, Canada and in the North Sea. We serve these markets through our facilities and service centers located in Texas, Oklahoma, and Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada, and Western Norway. A substantial portion of our revenue is generated from our operations in geographies where weather conditions may be severe, particularly during winter and spring months. Many experts believe global climate change could increase the frequency and severity of extreme weather conditions. Repercussions of severe weather conditions may include:

curtailment of drilling and completion activity;

weather-related damage to equipment resulting in suspension of operations or the shut-in of existing production;

weather-related damage to our facilities;

inability to deliver equipment and materials to jobsites in accordance with contract schedules; and

loss of productivity, or exposure of our employees to harm.

Many municipalities in Canada impose bans or other restrictions on the use of roads and highways, which include weight restrictions on the paved roads that lead to our jobsites due to the muddy conditions caused by the spring thaw. This can limit our access to these jobsites and our ability to service wells in these areas. In addition, wildfires in Canada, which are more common in spring, can result inselected shut-ins of oil and natural gas production. For example, during the second quarter of 2023, access to well sites in Canada were particularly impacted by wildfires, which negatively impacted certain of our customers’ cash flows, and their drilling and completion activity in the second half of 2023. Harsh winter conditions in the North Sea can result in strong winds and high waves, which can limit our ability to service offshore platforms. These constraints and the resulting shortages or high costs could delay our operations and materially increase our operating and capital costs in those regions. Weather conditions may also affect the price of crude oil and natural gas, and related demand for our services.

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If we are unable to accurately predict customer demand or if customers cancel their orders on short notice, we may hold excess or obsolete inventory, which would reduce gross margins. Conversely, insufficient inventory would result in lost revenue opportunities and potentially a loss in market share and damaged customer relationships.

Customers can generally cancel or defer purchase orders on short notice without incurring a significant penalty. As a result, we cannot accurately predict what or how many products such customers will need in the future. Anticipating demand is difficult because our customers face unpredictable demand for their own products and are increasingly focused on cash preservation and tighter inventory management.

Orders are placed with our suppliers based on forecasts of customer demand and, in some instances, we may establish buffer inventories to accommodate anticipated demand. Our forecasts of customer demand are based on multiple assumptions, each of which may introduce errors into the estimates. If we overestimate customer demand, we may allocate resources to the purchase of material or manufactured products that we may not be able to sell when expected, if at all. As a result, we may hold excess or obsolete inventory, which would reduce gross margin and adversely affect financial results. Conversely, if we underestimate customer demand or if insufficient manufacturing capacity is available, we would miss revenue opportunities and potentially lose market share and damage our customer relationships. In addition, any future significant cancellations or deferrals of product orders or the return of previously sold products could materially and adversely affect gross margins, increase product obsolescence charges and restrict our ability to fund our operations.

We could be subject to additional income tax liabilities.

We are subject to income taxes in the United States (federal and state), Canada (federal and provincial) and other foreign jurisdictions. Tax laws, regulations, and administrative practices in various jurisdictions may be subject to significant change, with or without notice, due to economic, political, and other conditions, and significant judgment is required in evaluating and estimating our provision and accruals for these taxes. There are many transactions that occur during the ordinary course of business for which the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. Our effective tax rates could be affected by numerous factors, such as intercompany transactions, the relative amount of our foreign earnings, including lower than anticipated earnings in jurisdictions where we have lower statutory tax rates and higher than anticipated earnings in jurisdictions where we have higher statutory tax rates, losses incurred in jurisdictions for which we are not able to realize the related tax benefit, changes in foreign currency exchange rates, entry into new businesses and geographies, changes to our existing businesses and operations, acquisitions (including integrations) and investments and how they are financed, changes in our deferred tax assets and liabilities and their valuation, and changes in the relevant tax, accounting, and other laws, regulations, administrative practices, principles, and interpretations. In addition, a number of countries are actively pursuing changes to their tax laws applicable to corporate multinationals.

We are also currently subject to audit in various jurisdictions, and these jurisdictions may assess additional income tax liabilities against us. Additionally, tax authorities have increasingly focused attention on intercompany transfer pricing with respect to sales of products and services and the use of intangibles. Tax authorities could disagree with our cross-jurisdictional transfer pricing or other matters and assess additional taxes. If we do not prevail in any such disagreements, our profitability and cash flows may be adversely affected. Developments in an audit, litigation, or the relevant laws, regulations, administrative practices, principles, and interpretations could have a material effect on our operating results or cash flows in the period or periods for which that development occurs, as well as for prior and subsequent periods.

Impairment in the carrying value of long-lived assets including goodwill could negatively affect our operating results.

We evaluate our property and equipment and identifiable intangible assets for impairment whenever changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset group may not be recoverable. Should the review indicate that the carrying value is not fully recoverable, the amount of the impairment loss is determined by comparing the carrying value to the estimated fair value. See “Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies,” “Note 7. Property and Equipment” and “Note 8. Goodwill and Identifiable Intangibles” of our consolidated financial statements for further information.

An assessment of potential goodwill impairment indicators is performed annually or whenever there is a triggering event that indicates an impairment loss may have been incurred. Under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”), we determine if it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit exceeds the related carrying amount. Determining the fair value of a reporting unit requires the use of estimates, assumptions and judgment. See “Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” and“Note 8. Goodwill and Identifiable Intangibles” of our consolidated financial statementsfor further information.

We are unable to predict whether impairments of one or more of our long-lived assets or investments may occur in the future. Such an impairment would result in non-cash charges and may indicate that conditions exist which could otherwise materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

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Our operations and our customers’ operations are subject to a variety of governmental laws and regulations that may increase our costs, limit the demand for our products and services or restrict our operations.

Our business and our customers’ businesses may be significantly affected by:

federal, state and local and non-U.S. laws and other regulations relating to import tariffs, oilfield operations, worker safety and protection of the environment;

changes in these laws and regulations; and

the level of enforcement of these laws and regulations.

If we fail to comply with safety regulations or maintain an acceptable level of safety at our facilities, we may incur fines, penalties or other liabilities, or may be held criminally liable. We may incur additional costs to upgrade equipment or conduct additional training, or otherwise incur costs in connection with compliance with safety regulations. Failure to maintain safe operations or achieve certain safety performance metrics could disqualify us from doing business with certain customers, particularly major oil companies.

We depend on the demand for our products and services from the oil and natural gas industry which is affected by changing taxes, price controls and other laws and regulations relating to the oil and natural gas industry in general. For example, the adoption of laws and regulations curtailing exploration and development drilling for oil and natural gas for economic or other policy reasons could adversely affect our operations by limiting demand for our products. In addition, some non-U.S. countries may adopt regulations or practices that give advantage to indigenous oil companies in bidding for oil leases, or require indigenous companies to perform oilfield services currently supplied by other service companies. To the extent that such companies are not our customers, or we are unable to develop relationships with them, our business may suffer. We cannot determine the extent to which our future operations and earnings may be affected by new legislation, new regulations or changes in existing regulations.

Because of our non-U.S. operations and sales, we are subject to changes in regional, political or economic conditions, and non-U.S. laws and policies, including taxes, trade protection measures, and changes in regulatory requirements governing the operations of companies in non-U.S. countries. We are also subject to changes in non-U.S. laws and regulations that may encourage or require hiring of local contractors or require non-U.S. contractors to employ citizens of, or purchase supplies from, a particular jurisdiction. If we fail to comply with any applicable law or regulation, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our business operations in countries outside of the United States are subject to U.S. and non-U.S. federal laws and regulations, including restrictions imposed by the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act as well as trade sanctions administered by the OFAC and the Commerce Department.

Local laws and customs in many countries differ significantly from those in the United States. In many countries, particularly in those with developing economies, it is common to engage in business practices that are prohibited by U.S. regulations applicable to us. The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) and similar anti-bribery laws in other jurisdictions, including the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act and Criminal Code in Canada and the UK Bribery Act 2010, prohibit corporations and individuals, including us and our employees, from engaging in certain activities to obtain or retain business or to influence a person working in an official capacity. We are responsible for any violations by our employees, contractors and agents, whether based within or outside of the United States, for violations of the FCPA. We may also be held responsible for any violations by an acquired company that occur prior to an acquisition, or subsequent to the acquisition but before we are able to institute our compliance procedures. In addition, our non-U.S. competitors that are not subject to the FCPA or similar laws may be able to secure business or other preferential treatment in such countries by means that such laws prohibit with respect to us. A violation of any of these laws, even if prohibited by our policies, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. Actual or alleged violations could damage our reputation, be expensive to defend, and impair our ability to do business.

We conduct business globally, and our business activities and services are subject to import and export control laws and regulations, as well as economic sanctions and other international trade laws of the United States and other countries. We must comply with U.S. export and import controls, economic sanctions, embargoes and other international trade laws, including the U.S. Commerce Department’s Export Administration Regulations and economic sanctions regulations administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and the U.S. Department of State. Although we have instituted policies and procedures designed to promote compliance with such laws and regulations, violations of import or export control laws and regulations or economic sanctions, embargoes or other international trade laws could result in negative consequences to us, including government investigations, sanctions, criminal or civil fines or penalties, more onerous compliance requirements, loss of authorizations or licenses needed to conduct aspects of our business, default under debt, reputational harm and other adverse consequences. Moreover, if any of our counterparties or jurisdictions where we do business becomes the target of economic sanctions, we may face an array of issues, including, but not limited to, having to abandon the related project, being unable to recoup prior invested time and capital or being subject to lawsuits, investigations or regulatory proceedings that could be time consuming and expensive to respond to, and which

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could lead to criminal or civil fines or penalties. Furthermore, the laws and regulations concerning import activity, export recordkeeping and reporting, export control and economic sanctions are complex and constantly changing. These laws and regulations can cause delays in shipments and unscheduled operational downtime.

Policy changes affecting international trade could adversely impact the demand for our products and our competitive position.

Changes in trade policies, including the imposition of tariffs, could negatively impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. The U.S. administration may propose or take action with respect to major changes to trade policies, such as the imposition of tariffs on imported products and the withdrawal from or renegotiation of certain trade agreements. These could also result in additional retaliatory action by United States’ trade partners. Given that we procure some of the raw materials that we use to create our products directly or indirectly from outside of the United States, the imposition of tariffs and other potential changes in U.S. trade policy could increase the cost or limit the availability of such raw materials, which could harm our competitive position and adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. For example, the United States has a tariff in place on a significant number of commodities originating from China, including certain chemicals utilized in our tracer diagnostics business. In addition, we sell a significant proportion of our products to customers outside of the United States. Retaliatory actions by other countries could result in increases in the price of our products, which could limit demand for such products, hurt our global competitive position and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Related to Technology Advancement and Cybersecurity

Our success depends on our ability to develop and implement new technologies, products and services that align with the needs of our customers, including addressing the shift to more non-traditional energy markets as part of the energy transition.

Our success depends on the ongoing development and implementation of new product designs and improvements, and on our ability to protect and maintain critical intellectual property assets related to these developments. If we are unable to continue to develop and produce competitive technology or deliver it to our clients in a timely and cost-competitive manner in the various markets we serve, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Also, if we are not able to obtain patent or other intellectual property protection of our technology, we may not be able to recoup development costs or fully exploit systems, services and technologies in a manner that allows us to meet evolving industry requirements at prices acceptable to our customers. In addition, some of our competitors are large national and multinational companies that may be able to devote greater financial, technical, manufacturing and marketing resources to research and development of new systems, services and technologies than we are able to do.

Investments in new technologies involve uncertainties and risk. Commercial success depends on many factors, including the levels of innovation, the development costs and the availability of capital resources to fund those costs, the levels of competition from others developing similar or other competing technologies, our ability to obtain or maintain government permits or certifications, the effectiveness of production, distribution and marketing efforts, and the costs to customers to deploy and provide support for the new technologies. In addition, it may take long periods of time to develop new technologies and we may not accurately predict the future needs of our customers or the competitive landscape. We may not achieve significant revenues from new product and service investments for a number of years, if at all, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Some of our customers are making investments in non-traditional energy markets as part of the energy transition. As a result, we may be unable to supply our traditional oil and gas products to these customers if we do not develop new technology that meets their changing needs. Therefore, to counteract these pressures, any reduced spending or decreased demand for traditional energy products will need to be offset at the same or greater pace by sales to other customers or increased sales of renewable energy technologies that we develop. If we are not successful in offsetting such sales, there could be a significant negative impact on our results of operations or financial condition. In addition, the focus on non-traditional energy investments could result in reduced spending by such companies or decreased demand for our existing products and services. We are unable to predict what effect the energy transition may have on prices, spending by customers, selling strategies, competitive position, customer retention or our ability to negotiate favorable agreements with customers.

Advancements in drilling and well completion technologies and processes could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our industry is characterized by rapid and significant technological advancements and introductions of new products and services using new technologies. As new well completion technologies develop, we may be placed at a competitive disadvantage, and competitive pressure may force us to implement new technologies at a substantial cost. We may not be able to successfully acquire or use new technologies. New technologies, services or standards, including improvements to existing competing technologies, could render our technologies, products or services obsolete, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, the development of new processes to replace hydraulic fracturing altogether or that replace our

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technologies, could cause a decline in the demand for the products and services that we provide and could result in a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our competitors may infringe upon, misappropriate, violate or challenge the validity or enforceability of our intellectual property and we may not be able to adequately protect or enforce our intellectual property rights in the future.

We currently hold multiple U.S., Canadian and international patents and have multiple pending patent applications for products and processes. Patent rights are limited and it may be possible for a third-party to design around our patents. Furthermore, patent rights have strict territorial limits and we may not be able to enforce our patents against infringement occurring in “non-covered” territories. Also, we do not have patents in every jurisdiction in which we conduct business and our patent portfolio will not protect all aspects of our business and may relate to obsolete or unusual methods, which would not prevent third parties from entering the same market.

Despite our efforts to safeguard our intellectual property rights, we may not be successful in doing so, or the steps taken by us in this regard may not be adequate to detect or deter misappropriation of our technology or to prevent an unauthorized third party from copying or otherwise obtaining and using our products, technology or other information that we regard as proprietary. Moreover, our competitors may independently develop equivalent knowledge, methods and know-how. Competitors could purchase our products and attempt to replicate some or all of the competitive advantages we derive from our development efforts, infringe our intellectual property rights, design around our protected technology or develop their own competitive technologies that fall outside of our intellectual property rights. Our inability to adequately protect our intellectual property could allow our competitors and other third parties to produce products based on our patented or proprietary technology and other intellectual property rights, providing increased competition and pricing pressure, which could substantially impair our ability to compete.

In addition, by customarily entering into employment, confidentiality and/or license agreements with our employees, customers and potential customers and suppliers, we attempt to limit access to and distribution of our technology. Our rights in our confidential information, trade secrets, and confidential know-how will not prevent third parties from independently developing similar information. Publicly available information (e.g. information in expired issued patents, published patent applications, and scientific literature) can also be used by third parties to independently develop technology. This independently developed technology may be equivalent or superior to our proprietary technology.

Confidential information shared with employees, customers and potential customers and suppliers may be used by those parties in a manner inconsistent with their employment, confidentiality and/or license agreements and we may not be able to adequately protect against or stop such behavior. We may not be able to determine if competitive technology offered by third parties was independently developed or resulted from breach of our agreements. In addition, we operate in certain jurisdictions with a heightened risk of misappropriation or misuse of confidential information and intellectual property and it may be more difficult in such jurisdictions to enforce our rights.

We may be adversely affected by disputes regarding intellectual property rights of third parties.

We have in the past, are presently, and may in the future, become involved in legal proceedings to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights. In addition, third parties may initiate litigation against us by asserting that the conduct of our business infringes, misappropriates or otherwise violates intellectual property rights. We may not prevail in any legal proceedings related to such claims, and our products and services may be found to infringe, impair, misappropriate, dilute or otherwise violate the intellectual property rights of others. If we are sued for infringement and lose, we could be required to pay substantial damages and/or be enjoined from using or selling the infringing products or technology. Likewise, if we do not prevail in the lawsuits initiated by us, it could impact the strength or validity of the patents in question and decrease our competitive advantage in the market that was protected by the patent. For example, as described in “Note 11. Commitments and Contingencies– Canadian Patent Matters,” a judge in the Canada Court rendered a decision against us holding that our asserted patents were invalid and that we infringed upon a patent of a third party. The Canada Court granted an injunction prohibiting us from any further infringement of the asserted patent. To comply with this injunction, we were able to modify our product with minimal costs, however, there can be no assurance that we would be able to do so with any future matter. In addition, if we are not successful in appealing the infringement determination in this or a similar decision, we would be subject to a damages trial where the court may award significant damages if the court disagrees with our position regarding the proper measure of damages attributable to the invention. Any legal proceeding concerning intellectual property is generally not covered by insurance and could be protracted and costly regardless of the merits of any claim and is inherently unpredictable and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, regardless of the outcome.

We may be unable to attract and retain skilled and technically knowledgeable employees, which could adversely affect our business.

Our success and future growth is dependent upon attracting and retaining highly skilled professionals and other technical personnel. A number of our employees are highly skilled engineers, chemists and highly trained technicians, and our failure to continue to attract and retain such individuals could adversely affect our ability to compete in the oilfield services industry. We may

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confront significant and potentially adverse competition for these skilled and technically knowledgeable personnel, particularly during periods of increased demand for oil and natural gas. Additionally, at times there may be a shortage of skilled and technical personnel available in the market, potentially compounding the difficulty of attracting and retaining these employees. A sustained labor shortage or increased turnover rates within our employee base could lead to increased costs and a material impact on our operations. If we are unable to recruit or retain sufficient skilled and technical personnel, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Loss of, or interruption to, our information and computer systems could adversely affect our business.

We are heavily dependent on our information systems and computer based programs, including our engineering information and accounting data. If any of such programs or systems were to fail or create erroneous information in our hardware or software network infrastructure, whether due to cyberattack or otherwise, unfavorable consequences could result including loss of our communication links or the inability to automatically process commercial transactions or engage in similar automated or computerized business activities. Any such consequence could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to cybersecurity risks. A cyber incident could occur and result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.

Our operations depend on effective and secure information technology systems. Threats to information technology systems, including as a result of cyberattacks and cyber incidents, continue to grow. Cybersecurity risks could include, but are not limited to, ransomware attacks, malicious software, attempts to gain unauthorized access to our data and the unauthorized release, corruption or loss of our data and personal information, interruptions in communication, loss of our intellectual property or theft of our sensitive or proprietary technology, loss or damage to our data delivery systems, or other cybersecurity and infrastructure systems, including our property and equipment. As a result of our hybrid work schedule, remote work and remote access to our systems has increased significantly as a large number of our office employees work remotely at least two days a week. Remote work relies heavily on the use of remote networking and online conferencing services that enable employees to work outside of our corporate infrastructure and, in some cases, use their own personal devices, which exposes us to additional cybersecurity risks, including unauthorized access to sensitive information as a result of increased remote access and other cybersecurity related incidents.

We are consistently subject to attempts to compromise our information technology systems. It is possible that our business, financial and other systems could be compromised, which could go unnoticed for a prolonged period of time. While we utilize various procedures and controls to mitigate exposure to such risk, there can be no assurance that the procedures and controls that we implement, or which we cause third party service providers to implement, are sufficient to protect our systems, information or other property. Additionally, customers as well as other third parties upon whom we rely face similar cybersecurity threats, which could directly or indirectly impact our business and operations. The occurrence of a cyber incident or attack could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Further, as cyber incidents continue to evolve, we may be required to incur additional costs to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures or to investigate or remediate the effects of cyber incidents. Also, our insurance coverage for cyberattacks may not be sufficient to cover all the losses we may experience as a result of such cyberattacks. For additional information on our cybersecurity and information technology systems, see “Item 1C. Cybersecurity” below.

Complications with our ERP system could adversely impact our business and operations.

We rely extensively on information systems and technology to manage our business and summarize operating results. Our ERP system is designed to accurately maintain our financial records, enhance operational functionality and provide timely information to our management team related to the operation of the business. Technical issues in the operation of our ERP system could cause operating and reporting delays, increased costs and other difficulties. If we are unable to successfully operate our ERP system, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, if we do not effectively operate the ERP system, our internal control over financial reporting could be deemed ineffective which may adversely affect our ability to assess those controls adequately or timely, and may limit our ability to produce reliable financial data.

We may not be able to satisfy technical requirements, testing requirements, code requirements or other specifications under contracts and contract tenders.

Many of our products could be used in harsh environments and severe service applications. Our contracts with customers and customer requests for bids may set forth detailed specifications or technical requirements (including that they meet certain industrial code requirements, such as API, ASME or similar codes, or that our processes and facilities maintain ISO or similar certifications) for our products and services, which may also include extensive testing requirements. We cannot assure you that our products or facilities will be able to satisfy the specifications or requirements, or that we will be able to perform the full-scale testing necessary to prove that the product specifications are satisfied in future contract bids or under existing contracts, or that the costs of modifications to our products or facilities to satisfy the specifications and testing will not adversely affect our results of operations. If our products or

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facilities are unable to satisfy such requirements, or we are unable to perform or satisfy the required testing, our customers may cancel their contracts and/or seek new suppliers, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Related to Environmental and Regulatory Matters

Hydraulic fracturing is substantially dependent on the availability of water. Restrictions on the ability of our customers to obtain water may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Water is an essential component in unconventional oil and natural gas development and production during both the drilling and hydraulic fracturing processes. Over the past several years, certain of the areas in which we sell our products and services have experienced extreme drought conditions and competition for water in such areas is growing. As a result of this severe drought, some local water districts and Canadian provinces have begun restricting the use of water subject to their jurisdiction for hydraulic fracturing to protect local water supply. The inability of our customers to obtain water to use in their operations from local sources or to effectively utilize flowback water could impact demand for our products and services, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The adoption of climate change legislation or regulations restricting emissions of GHGs, and associated litigation, could result in increased compliance or operating costs, limit the areas in which our customers may conduct E&P activities, and reduce demand for oil and natural gas.

Governmental, scientific, and public concern over the threat of climate change arising from GHG emissions is giving rise to an increased likelihood of regulatory actions to address climate change in the United States and abroad. As a result, our customers are or may become subject to statutes or regulations aiming to reduce emissions of GHGs. In December 2009, the EPA determined that emissions of carbon dioxide, methane and other GHGs present an endangerment to public health and the environment because emissions of such gases are, according to the EPA, contributing to warming of the earth’s atmosphere and other climatic changes. Based on these findings, the EPA has proposed regulations restricting emissions of GHGs under existing provisions of the CAA, including establishing New Source Performance Standards (“NSPS”), a set of uniform technology-based standards for new and modified sources of air pollution, that govern emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds from new and modified oil and natural gas development and production operations. In May 2023, the EPA issued a proposed rule setting NSPS that would regulate GHGs from fossil fuel-fired power plants. If finalized, this proposed rule would have profound effects on future energy production. Most recently, in December 2023, the EPA announced a final rule that will sharply reduce emissions of methane and other harmful air pollution from oil and natural gas operations. The final rule includes updated and strengthened standards for methane and other air pollutants from new, modified, and reconstructed sources, as well as guidelines to assist states in developing plans to limit methane emissions from existing sources. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 became law in August 2022, and aims to reduce GHGs, including carbon dioxide, by 40 percent by 2030. The Inflation Reduction Act provides billions of dollars in financial incentives, in the form of grants and loans, designed to facilitate financing and deployment of renewable energy projects in the United States.

In November 2005, the Canadian federal government began to regulate carbon dioxide emissions by adding carbon dioxide to the List of Toxic Substances under CEPA. Today, many GHG emissions sources are subject to a carbon tax of CAD 65/CO2e, which will rise to CAD 170/CO2e in 2030 or to a provincial system which is equivalent to the federal tax. In June 2022, the Canadian federal government also brought into force the CFR which sets GHG emissions limits on a variety of liquid fuels, including gasoline and diesel. In December 2023, the federal government released the Federal Cap Framework that proposes regulations to cap oil and gas emissions in 2030 at 35 to 38 percent below 2019 levels. At the same time the Canadian federal government proposed amendments to reduce methane emissions in the upstream oil and gas sector by 75% below 2012 levels by 2030. While the scope and future implementation of any final rules and regulations regarding such proposed NSPS in the United States or the Federal Cap Framework in Canada, emissions requirements and financial incentives, remain uncertain, these rules and regulations could have an adverse effect on our customers and result in an indirect material adverse effect on our business.

Various U.S. states or groups of states also have adopted or considered adopting legislation, regulations or other governmental actions focused on reducing GHG emissions, including cap and trade programs, carbon taxes, restricting methane emissions from exploration and production activities, reporting and tracking initiatives and renewable portfolio standards. At the international level, the United States and Canada are parties to the United Nations-sponsored Paris Agreement, a non-binding agreement for nations to limit their GHG emissions through individually-determined reduction goals. Moreover, at the December 2023, COP28 climate summit, representatives from nearly 200 countries agreed to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems so as to achieve net zero by 2050. Although it is not possible at this time to predict how any legal requirements imposed following the implementation of the Paris Agreement, subsequent international negotiations or otherwise that may be adopted or issued to address GHG emissions would impact our business or that of our customers, any such future laws, regulations or legal requirements imposing reporting or permitting obligations on, or limiting emissions of GHGs from, oil and natural gas exploration activities could require our customers to incur costs to reduce emissions of GHGs associated with their operations. In addition, substantial limitations on GHG emissions could adversely affect demand for the oil and natural gas our customers produce.

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In addition, various federal and/or state common law claims have been made against certain energy companies alleging that GHG emissions have resulted in actionable damages. As a result, private individuals may seek to enforce environmental laws and regulations against certain energy companies and could allege personal injury or property damages. While our business is not a party to any such litigation, we could be named in actions making similar allegations. An unfavorable ruling in any such case could significantly impact our or our customers’ operations and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Moreover, climate change may cause more extreme weather conditions such as more intense droughts, hurricanes, thunderstorms, tornadoes and snow or ice storms, as well as wildfires and rising sea levels and increased volatility in seasonal temperatures. Extreme weather conditions can interfere with our or our customers’ operations and increase our costs, and damage resulting from extreme weather may not be fully insured. However, at this time, we are unable to determine the extent to which climate change may lead to increased storm or weather hazards affecting our operations.

Federal and state legislative and regulatory initiatives relating to hydraulic fracturing could result in increased costs and additional operating restrictions or delays on our customers, which could in turn decrease the demand for our products and services.

Our business is dependent on the ability of our customers to conduct hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling activities. Hydraulic fracturing is an important common practice that is used to stimulate production of hydrocarbons, particularly natural gas, from tight formations, including shales. The process, which involves the injection of water, sand and other proppants under pressure into formations to fracture the surrounding rock and stimulate production, is typically regulated by state oil and natural gas commissions in the United States and provincial energy regulators in Canada. In the United States, the federal government can, however, limit hydraulic fracturing activities on federal lands through permitting, including by limiting the amount of lands available to lease or increasing royalty rates. In addition, the current administration cancelled the construction permit for the Keystone XL oil pipeline, which would have transported Canadian oil to the Gulf Coast. Federal and provincial agencies also have asserted regulatory authority over additional aspects of the process and there are certain governmental reviews either completed, underway, or being proposed that focus on the environmental aspects of hydraulic fracturing practices. These completed, ongoing, or proposed studies, depending on their degree of pursuit and whether any meaningful results are obtained, could spur initiatives to further regulate hydraulic fracturing. For example, in December 2016, the EPA released a final report assessing the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources. In this report, the EPA found scientific evidence that hydraulic fracturing activities can impact drinking water resources under some circumstances. Other governmental agencies, including the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Government Accountability Office, have evaluated or are evaluating various other aspects of hydraulic fracturing. State, provincial and federal regulatory agencies recently have focused on a possible connection between the operation of injection wells used for oil and natural gas waste disposal and seismic activity. Similar concerns have been raised that hydraulic fracturing may also contribute to seismic activity. When caused by human activity, such events are called induced seismicity. Regulatory agencies at all levels are continuing to study the possible linkage between oil and natural gas activity and induced seismicity. These ongoing or proposed studies could spur initiatives to further regulate hydraulic fracturing and could ultimately make it more difficult or costly to perform fracturing and increase the costs of compliance and doing business for our customers. In addition, in response to concerns regarding induced seismicity, regulators in some states and provinces have from time to time, developed and implemented plans directing certain wells where seismic incidents have occurred to monitor, restrict or suspend disposal well operations. Such actions to monitor, restrict or suspend disposal well operations could make it more difficult or costly for our customers to perform fracturing and may increase their operating costs, thereby reducing their cash flows.

Various state, provincial, and local-level initiatives in regions with substantial shale resources have been or may be proposed or implemented to further regulate hydraulic fracturing practices, limit water withdrawals and water use, require disclosure of fracturing fluid constituents, restrict which additives may be used, or implement temporary or permanent bans on hydraulic fracturing. For instance, the State of New York elected in 2015 to prohibit high volume hydraulic fracturing altogether and California is poised to ban hydraulic fracturing on state-permitted lands in 2024. Any increased regulation of hydraulic fracturing could reduce our customers’ demand for our products and services and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

At this time, it is not possible to estimate the impact on our business of newly enacted or potential federal, state, provincial or local laws governing hydraulic fracturing.

Restrictions on drilling activities intended to protect certain species of wildlife may adversely affect the ability of our customers to conduct drilling activities in some of the areas where we operate.

Oil and natural gas operations in our operating areas can be adversely affected by seasonal or permanent restrictions on drilling activities designed to protect various wildlife and their habitat, which may limit the ability of our customers to operate in protected areas. Permanent restrictions imposed to protect endangered species could prohibit drilling in certain areas or require the implementation of expensive mitigation measures. Additionally, the designation of previously unprotected species as threatened or

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endangered in areas where we operate could result in increased costs arising from species protection measures. Restrictions on the oil and natural gas operations of our customers to protect wildlife and their habitat could reduce demand for our products and services, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be able to meet applicable regulatory requirements for our use of certain chemicals by our tracer diagnostics business, and, even if requirements are met, complying on an ongoing basis with the numerous regulatory requirements may be time-consuming and costly.

The chemicals that we use in our tracer diagnostics business may be subject to government regulation in our target markets. In the United States, the EPA administers the Toxic Substances Control Act (the “TSCA”) which regulates the commercial registration, distribution, and use of many chemicals, including many of the chemicals we use in our tracer diagnostics business. Before we can manufacture or distribute significant volumes of a chemical, we need to determine whether that chemical is listed in the TSCA inventory. If the substance is listed, then manufacture or distribution can commence immediately. If not, then we must file a Pre-Manufacture Notice (“PMN”) with the EPA for review. Certain categories of chemical substances may be exempt from a full PMN review, including chemical substances that qualify for a Low Volume Exemption (“LVE”). We have filed PMNs for certain chemicals, and have sought for and obtained LVEs for other chemicals that we use in our tracer diagnostics business, and we will file additional PMNs or seek additional LVEs in the future. We may not be able to expediently receive approval from the EPA to list such chemicals on the TSCA inventory, resulting in delays in our ability to manufacture such chemicals, or significant increases in testing requirements.

NCSM US Equity

NCSM · 10-K · period ended 2023-12-31

Item 1. Business

Item 1A. Risk Factors

NCSM US Equity☆

NCSM · 10-K · period ended 2023-12-31

Item 1. Business

Item 1A. Risk Factors

NCSM US Equity