Small oil and gas companies managing risks

The world's largest oilfield services provider announced a 30 percent drop in first quarter profits today.

Despite this news from Schlumberger, smaller oil and gas services companies are trying to manage their risks as best they can amid a market where working capital is scarce and new business loans are hard to come by.

According to an article in the New York Times, given the recent fall in oil prices from record highs last summer, small and medium sized business in the oil and gas services and related industries have been reporting lower profits and postponing new exploration projects.

These "mom and pop shops" of the oil industry have kept a surprising level of optimism, says the New York Times article. One industry CEO, John Pinkerton of Range Resources, is quoted by the news source as saying, "2010 to 2030 is going to be the golden era of natural gas."

Like many small businesses, the petroleum industry players - especially the smaller ones - are likely waiting for an easing of the credit markets to help them grow the business.

But for small businesses unable to access short-term credit from traditional sources, many are turning to non-traditional lenders for relief.