Bem-vindo ao Brasil, Geoforce

The new year is still fresh, but the team at Geoforce hasn’t missed a beat with everyone setting their gears to “go!” One month in and 2013 has already proven to be momentous. One of the more exciting announcements is the new international presence Geoforce established by opening up an office in Macae, Brasil. With an existing and expanding customer base in the country, high production growth forecasts for the coming years, and a rig count fast approaching 200, Geoforce felt the time was right to expand our reach into the South American country. This past week, I had the pleasure of chatting with Bruno Trigoly, Geoforce’s Business Manager for Brasil, to learn more about the newest Geoforce adventure.

CN: Bruno, I hear you have an extensive history in the oil patch. Can you tell me a bit about your background prior to Geoforce? What sparked the interest in Oil & Gas? BT: I started my career teaching English to Brasilian expatriates. I eventually moved to procurement and engineering related jobs in the oilfield with companies like Petroserv, Foxoil de Brasil and Petrometal. Prior to Geoforce, I served as a Base, and later District Manager for Archer, an American-based global oilfield service company that specializes in drilling and well services. What has always excited me is the industry’s fast-pace and the “controlled chaos” that abounds. Technology has always been a big part of what happens in the oilfield as well, and I’ve always been kind of a “techie”. So I love that Geoforce combines all of my interests and uses technology to help mitigate some of the oilfield’s “chaos.” CN: You will be in charge of the Geoforce presence in Brasil. What are your goals for 2013? BT: Brasil is Geoforce’s second largest market after the United States (in terms of assets managed). As a company, we feel that our technology can have an even greater impact in Brasil, given the dispersed vastness of the offshore market here and government regulations around GPS tracking that play a huge part in operations. The goal would be to expand our current Brasilian customer base and spread the Geoforce message as far and as fast as we can.   CN: Can you tell me about the current O&G climate in South America? BT: It is simply too big to ignore right now. Economists are expecting a more dynamic phase of activity this coming year, driven mainly by business in Oil & Gas. Petrobras is drilling in the Amazon. Deep water ports are becoming more dispersed and have equipment going out of multiple dock locations. There are shale gas discoveries in Argentina. The development of projects has begun and things are heating up fast. These are all things that as a company Geoforce feels like we can contribute to. CN: In marketing, we always get excited about tradeshows. OTC Brasil is in October. Tell me about what you expect to see new at the show. BT: OTC Brasil is one of the world’s foremost events for the development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production and environmental protection. It will be a huge opportunity for Geoforce to attend and exhibit our newest developments on both the software and hardware side. This show will be an opportunity to show more of the world what we can do. CN: Thanks for taking the time to talk to me today; I promise I’ll let you get back to work – but just one more question. I hear you’re an avid golfer and everyone in the office is dying to know: What’s your personal best? BT: Hey, I’m just trying to make it off the C-team. Honestly, most of Geoforce’s customers in Macae are on the golf course every Saturday – so it just happens to be where I wind up!