The oil drilling industry can be considered as among the most delicate industries that the world has seen. The best way to describe this industry is that there is a steady increase in demand for natural oil and gas in the industry. 

This explains the reason why the vast majority of drill rig companies are on the constant lookout for various ways they can improve their existing wells and optimize their oil production.

Did you know that the first country that drilled the first-ever oil-producing wells was China, and they built oil wells that were about 800 feet deep? From that time moving forward, the demand for natural gas and oil has always been on the rise. Growing industries from around the world need a reliable source of fuel to power up their machinery, and this growing industry has always been there to provide for that. 

The first and the original drilling method used before by major players in the oil exploration business was developed by Edwin L. Drake in 1859. Up to this day, drill rig companies are still using this drilling method for oil and natural gas and were never considered obsolete. 

Doing the math on this, we can reckon that the world has consumed 800 billion barrels of oil, and this is from 1859 up to the present. Hence, this explains the reason why the oil exploration and drilling business is considered as one of the most profitable and dynamic industries the world has seen.

For as long as there are pieces of machinery that require the use of mineral oil and its manifold byproducts, this industry will remain productive and will continue to grow in many years to come.  

With the latest advancements in oil drilling technology, with the help of newer drilling techniques, it is now possible for oil drilling firms to even reach mineral oil reservoirs which in years past were considered by them as unreachable or completely inaccessible. Simply put, the drilling techniques they employed for use in many years somewhat put a limit on what they can produce. 

In an oil drilling process, qualified geologists often have a major role to play. With respect to their experience and expertise in this field, drilling companies rely on them when it comes to identifying the best location to drill on. 

Qualified geologists are professionals who can partner up with a drilling firm on a contractual or per-project basis. Sometimes they can also choose to work independently, no commitment at all, with any specific drilling company of their choice. These pros are highly skilled in the sense that they studied rock and related terrains which makes it easy for them to find and identify the best location with a possible oil bed. Such sites are the only ones that qualify for an oil drilling process.  

The purpose of oil drilling is to have a mechanism in place that will allow for the suctioning of crude petroleum gases and oil from underneath the earth itself. Most of us are familiar with crude oil in the form of tar, which is its semi-solid or liquid state. 

Crude oil reservoirs are usually found thousands of feet below ground, hence, the only possible and practical way to have access to them is via a drilling process. Oil from underneath the ground can be drilled by either of the two drilling techniques.

Offshore Drilling Technique

This type of drilling method involves the use of oil drills, which are referred to as jack-up rigs. They are often taken advantage of at a depth of 200 feet below ground, and when depth would be close to or nearing 2000 feet under, they will be latched to the ocean floor using air-filled bags. This method of drilling is very much comparable to other techniques that are normally used on land.  

Rotary Drilling Technique 

If we will take into account the number of drill rig companies that employ the use of this drilling method, it would make it the most widely used technique today. This drilling technique is very much recognizable in the sense that their base comes with a rotating turntable, matched with a tall oil derrick.

Special mud is utilized here to help in suctioning out rock cuttings. It is also used for lubrication purposes for the drill bit. This mud can be formed by combining clay, water, and some chemicals.  

There are several other methods of drilling techniques used today by many oil exploration companies, amongst them are percussion drilling and horizontal drilling. The procedure they come with is best described as long and strenuous, that it takes a couple of years just to drill a single oil well. Hence, it is not the most preferred method in the oil exploration space.