SLB New Energy Pivot, $1 B Revenue Target, 1 Star Energy Geothermal Deal, and 3 Core Technologies (2024 to 2025)

Subsurface Expertise Pivot, SLB Leverages Oilfield Skills for New Energy

SLB is executing a strategic pivot, redeploying its deep subsurface and engineering expertise from traditional oil and gas to de-risk and industrialize new energy sectors, a move driven by slowing growth in upstream markets and a clear focus on industrial-scale decarbonization. This transition leverages decades of core competency to build a competitive advantage in emerging energy verticals.

• In 2025, SLB’s “New Energy” division transitioned from an exploratory venture into a core business line, with a projected revenue target exceeding $1 billion from geothermal, critical minerals, and carbon capture and storage (CCS). This marks a definitive shift from pilot projects to commercial-scale operations.
• The pivot is a direct strategic response to market headwinds, including an anticipated decrease in global upstream investment and a reported 9% year-on-year revenue decline for the company in Q 3 2025. Diversification has become a financial and strategic imperative.
• The company’s strategy deliberately avoids consumer-side markets like residential solar, instead focusing on industrial-scale systems where its subsurface knowledge in drilling, reservoir management, and project execution creates a significant competitive barrier to entry.

Global Energy Mix Shifts Towards Renewables

This chart establishes the global macro trend driving SLB’s strategic pivot. It visually represents the decline of fossil fuels and the rise of renewables, providing the foundational business case for leveraging subsurface expertise in new energy sectors.

(Source: REN21)

$1 B New Energy Target, SLB Financial Pivot Amidst Upstream Decline

SLB‘s investment strategy in 2025 reflects a deliberate capital reallocation, funding its New Energy division to achieve a projected $1 billion in revenue while managing declining revenues in its core oil and gas services. The financial performance of the New Energy division is a critical metric for validating this diversification against a volatile traditional market.

• The company projects that its new energy systems will generate combined revenue exceeding $1 billion in 2025, a key performance indicator for its transition into a diversified energy technology company.
• This strategic investment provides a hedge against the company’s traditional business, which saw global revenue decrease by 6% year-on-year in Q 2 2025 to $8.55 billion, followed by a 9% year-on-year decline in Q 3 2025.
• The push into new energy is underpinned by SLB‘s own forecast of a potential downturn in global upstream spending for 2025, highlighting the need to secure new, high-growth revenue streams.

Renewable Project Pipeline Shows Strong Growth

This chart justifies SLB’s $1 billion new energy target by illustrating the tangible and growing pipeline of renewable projects. The strong growth in the project pipeline directly correlates with future revenue opportunities, making the financial target credible.

(Source: Deloitte)

Table: SLB Financial Performance Metrics (2025)

SLB 1 Major Geothermal Deal, Star Energy Partnership Model (2025)

SLB‘s 2025 partnership strategy prioritizes technology collaborations with established operators to accelerate the commercialization and reduce the development risk of new energy projects. The agreement with Star Energy Geothermal serves as a blueprint for this approach, combining SLB‘s technology suite with the partner’s regional and operational expertise.

• The cornerstone partnership of 2025 is the technology collaboration with Star Energy Geothermal, announced on January 22, 2025, which is designed to fast-track new solutions for geothermal development challenges.
• This model allows SLB to leverage its partner’s operational experience and project pipeline while focusing on its core strength of providing advanced subsurface and drilling technologies.
• This collaborative framework is expected to be replicated across its other new energy verticals, including lithium extraction and CCS, to accelerate market entry and scale operations globally.

Geothermal Market to Grow 150% by 2035

This chart directly supports the rationale for SLB’s major geothermal deal with Star Energy. The significant projected market growth for geothermal energy demonstrates the long-term value and strategic importance of this partnership.

(Source: Market Research Future)

Table: SLB New Energy Partnerships (2025)

US Policy Headwinds, SLB Faces OBBBA Act Uncertainty

The enactment of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA) in the U.S. on July 4, 2025, has introduced significant policy uncertainty by repealing or scaling back key clean energy tax credits established by the Inflation Reduction Act. This policy shift creates major financial headwinds for capital-intensive projects in the U.S. and elevates the importance of geographic diversification for SLB.

• The OBBBA directly impacts the economic viability of U.S.-based geothermal and CCS projects, which were previously incentivized by IRA tax credits. This reversal increases project finance risk and could slow domestic deployment.
• The new legislation stipulates stricter deadlines and requirements, such as a rule that certain renewable projects must begin construction by the end of 2025 to qualify for remaining credits, creating a challenging investment climate.
• This policy volatility in a key market underscores the strategic importance of SLB‘s global presence and its ability to pivot toward international markets with more stable and supportive policy frameworks for new energy projects.

Technology Commercialization, SLB’s Lithium and CCS Readiness

In 2025, SLB is focused on moving its new energy technologies from demonstration to commercial-scale deployment, with mature carbon capture solutions ready for the market and its sustainable lithium extraction process nearing its first commercial applications. The strategy hinges on adapting and applying its extensive subsurface technology portfolio to these new verticals.

• SLB‘s CCS solutions are commercially ready (TRL 9) and positioned to help scale global capacity, which stood at 49 million tons annually at the start of 2025. The primary challenge is not technology but the massive scale-up required to meet net-zero targets.
• The company’s proprietary technology for sustainable lithium production from subsurface brine assets is advancing toward commercial demonstration (TRL 7-8). Its minimal use of land and freshwater presents a significant advantage over traditional mining.
• In geothermal, the partnership with Star Energy is designed to accelerate advanced systems from the prototype and demonstration phase (TRL 6-7) to full commercial readiness by solving key development challenges.

Charts Detail Mineral Needs for Clean Energy

This chart provides the market context for SLB’s technology commercialization in lithium. By detailing the massive increase in mineral needs for clean energy, it underscores the demand and strategic value of SLB developing lithium extraction technologies.

(Source: Nature)

SWOT Analysis, SLB’s Strategic Pivot Risks and Opportunities

The analysis of SLB‘s strategic pivot in 2025 reveals that its core strength lies in leveraging its incumbent expertise for new markets. However, this opportunity is directly challenged by significant external threats from policy instability and a volatile oil market, making execution and geographic diversification critical.

• Strength: Deep subsurface and drilling expertise provides a strong competitive advantage in technically complex new energy sectors.
• Weakness: Continued high revenue dependency on the cyclical and potentially declining upstream oil and gas market.
• Opportunity: The industrial decarbonization market represents a massive, high-growth opportunity, with SLB‘s New Energy division targeting over $1 billion in revenue.
• Threat: The repeal of U.S. clean energy subsidies via the OBBBA creates significant economic headwinds for domestic projects.

Energy Scenarios Project Renewable Dominance by 2050

This chart provides a long-term, strategic view that is perfect for a SWOT analysis. The projection of renewable dominance by 2050 frames the primary ‘Opportunity’ for SLB’s pivot, while also implying the ‘Threat’ to its legacy business.

(Source: RFF.org)

Table: SWOT Analysis for SLB’s New Energy Initiatives

Watch the OBBBA Impact, SLB’s $1 B Target Faces Policy Risk

The primary variable for SLB‘s new energy success in the near term is the market’s reaction to the OBBBA’s repeal of IRA tax credits; if U.S. project economics falter, watch for a strategic pivot towards international projects and technologies less dependent on government subsidies.

• If this happens: Major U.S. geothermal and CCS projects are delayed or canceled due to the loss of tax incentives.
• Watch this: SLB‘s capital allocation announcements and partnership agreements. A significant increase in non-U.S. project announcements would signal a geographic pivot in response to the policy shift.
• These could be happening: An acceleration of the lithium-from-brine technology, whose economics may be less reliant on energy production tax credits, and a strategic focus on winning projects in Europe and Asia where policy remains more stable.

North America Dominates Renewable Energy Market

This chart explains why US policy issues like the OBBBA Act pose a significant risk to SLB’s $1 billion global target. Because North America is the dominant market, any policy-driven slowdown or uncertainty in the US has an outsized impact on the company’s ability to achieve its financial goals.

(Source: Market Research Future)

The questions your competitors are already asking

This report covers one angle of SLB’s strategic pivot to new energy. The questions that matter most depend on your work.

• SLB investments and funding. Is the New Energy division on track for its $1 billion revenue target?
• Which oilfield service companies are gaining or losing ground against SLB in the pivot to new energy?
• SLB activities in geothermal. Is the 1 Star Energy partnership progressing from pilot to commercial scale?
• What are the opportunities for SLB’s subsurface services in the critical minerals market?

This report does not answer these. Enki Brief Pro does.

Your question, your angle, your framework. SWOT, PESTL, scenario modelling. The same niche depth, built around the decision your work actually depends on.

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