(WO) – Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has completed the acquisition of Ulterra Drilling Technologies, L.P., a global provider of specialized drill bit solutions. Total consideration for the acquisition, on a cash-free, debt-free basis, included $370 million of cash and 34.9 million shares of Patterson-UTI common stock.

Andy Hendricks, Chief Executive Officer of Patterson-UTI, commented, "Ulterra's industry-leading position in the North American PDC drill bit market complements Patterson-UTI's longstanding history of operational excellence and innovation. This strategic acquisition, along with our recent announcement to merge with NexTier Oilfield Solutions, further advances our strategy to enhance our positions in drilling and completions.

"The addition of Ulterra to Patterson-UTI Energy's service portfolio provides a number of key advantages. First, Ulterra's growing presence in the Middle East broadens our geographic footprint and facilitates stronger relationships with key customers in this dynamic international market.

“Second, Ulterra's data-centric approach to manufacturing, operations, and marketing, reflected in their proprietary BitHub data platform, complements Patterson-UTI's PTEN+ data platform. We believe the combination of data systems from Patterson-UTI, NexTier, and Ulterra will create the most comprehensive set of data for drilling and completions in the United States, enhancing our analytics capabilities and allowing us to better support our customers' objectives to improve well economics."