Nabors X-29 钻机与 X-12 钻机属于同一系列，后者在该盆地钻探了三口最长的井。（来源：Nabors Industries）

最大限度地提高碳氢化合物的采收率是石油和天然气行业的不变目标，而开发新技术则是实现这一目标的手段。水平钻井就是一个例子。经过多年垂直钻井以到达油藏，创新思想家想出了一种新策略，以尽可能多地从油田中开采石油 - 水平钻井。当新的挑战出现时，富有创造力的工程师想出了如何扩展水平井以进入更多的油藏，从而提高采收率和运营效率。 

看看那些不断突破水平钻井极限的公司，就能明白该行业在延长井长和提高产量的技术开发方面已经取得了多大的进步。

The Nabors X-29 Rig is in the same family of rigs as the X-12, which drilled the three longest wells in the Basin. (Source: Nabors Industries)

Maximizing hydrocarbon recovery is the constant goal of the oil and gas industry, and developing new technologies is the means to that end. Horizontal drilling is a case in point. After years of drilling vertically to reach reservoirs, innovative thinkers came up with a new strategy to get as much oil out of a field as possible—horizontal drilling. And when new challenges arose, creative engineers figured out how to extend lateral wells to access more of the reservoir for improved recovery and operational efficiency. 

A look at the companies that are pushing the limits of horizontal drilling shows just how far the industry has come in developing technologies to extend well length and increase production.