Risk factors associated with the industry in which we operate
Any cost reduction initiatives that Core Lab undertakes may not deliver the results it expects, and these actions may adversely affect its business.
As business conditions change, the Company may need to implement cost-cutting measures that may adversely affect its business. These cost-cutting measures may include reductions in various expenses, including the quarterly dividend, base salaries of senior executives and employees, and annual capital expenditures, as well as implementation of temporary employee furloughs, workforce reductions, and other measures to reduce corporate and operating costs.
These cost-cutting initiatives could result in disruptions to Core Lab’s operations. Any such measures could also negatively impact Core Lab’s business by delaying the introduction of new products or technologies, interrupting the effective deployment of existing products and services, or impacting employee retention. In addition, there can be no assurance that these cost controls will closely correlate with reduced operating activity. If Core Lab’s operating costs are higher than expected, or if it does not maintain adequate control of its costs, Core Lab’s results of operations will suffer. If Core Lab is unable to mitigate these or other potential risks related to its initiatives, it may disrupt Core Lab’s business or could have a material adverse effect on its financial condition and results of operations.
Downturns in the oil and gas industry, or in the oilfield services business, or lower success rates of our clients’ exploration and drilling efforts, may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations.
The oil and gas industry is highly cyclical and demand for the majority of our oilfield services and products is substantially dependent on the level of expenditures by the oil and gas industry for the exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas reserves, which are sensitive to oil and natural gas prices and generally dependent on the industry's view of future oil and gas prices. There are numerous factors affecting the supply of and demand for our services and products, which are summarized as:
general and economic business conditions, including market prices of oil and gas and expectations about future prices;
global or domestic health crises;
the adoption of legal requirements or taxation;
changes in existing laws, regulations or other governmental actions;
cost of producing and the ability to deliver oil and natural gas;
the level of drilling and production activity;
the success of our clients’ exploration and drilling efforts;
financial condition of our client base and their ability to fund capital expenditures;
coordination by OPEC+ countries;
civil unrest or political uncertainty in oil producing or consuming countries and other geopolitical conflict, including commencement of a major military conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran in February 2026, the continuing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and political uncertainty in Venezuela;
level of consumption of oil, gas and petrochemicals by consumers;
availability of services and materials for our clients to grow their capital expenditures and to deliver product to market; and
availability of materials and equipment from key suppliers.
The oil and gas industry historically has experienced periodic downturns, which have been characterized by diminished demand for our oilfield services and products and downward pressure on the prices we charge. A significant downturn in the oil and gas industry could result in a reduction in demand for oilfield services and could adversely affect our operating results.
Drilling for oil and gas is subject to geologic risk, and exploration and appraisal wells are particularly exposed. In some instances, an operator’s drilling efforts may yield no recoverable hydrocarbons, known as a “dry hole”. Even when oil and gas is recoverable within a reservoir, the size of a discovery may make further drilling uneconomic. A higher incidence of dry holes or uneconomic wells could result in reduced demand for our products and services as operators abandon or substantially scale back their drilling and development programs.
Conditions in the Middle East, including current uncertainty and instability resulting from the conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, as well as other regional hostilities could adversely affect our business.
The Company owns and operates laboratories throughout the Middle East, including an Advanced Technology Center in Abu Dhabi, reservoir rocks and fluids laboratories in Doha, Dammam and Kuwait City, and crude oil and derived products testing laboratories in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and elsewhere in the region. Accordingly, political, economic and military conditions in the Middle East and the surrounding region directly affect our business and could materially and adversely affect our business, operations, or personnel.
On February 28, 2026 the United States and Israel initiated air strikes against Iranian military targets and leadership. Since then, retaliation by Iran against United States and Israeli interests in the Middle East has been widespread. As of the date of the filing of this Annual Report, military activity and hostilities continue to escalate in the Middle East, and the situation throughout the region remains volatile, with the potential for continued escalation into a broader and more sustained regional conflict. The situation has led to the closure of regional airspace and retaliatory strikes impacting multiple nations in the Middle East where Core Lab operates, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
The conflict has resulted in, and could continue to result in, supply disruptions, damage to energy infrastructure, increased shipping and insurance costs, delays or rerouting of crude oil and refined products cargos, heightened security risks, and increased volatility in commodity prices, all of which could affect our customers and our ability to do business with them. For example, since the conflict began, Iran has targeted and launched numerous attacks on critical infrastructure in the region, including refining facilities, maritime ports and international commercial marine vessels, resulting in many vessel operators and charterers re-routing to avoid the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and adjacent regional waters, worsening existing supply chain issues, including delays in supplier deliveries, extended lead times and increased cost of freight, and impacts to the shipment of crude oil and refined products.
The intensity and duration of this conflict are difficult to predict. The conflict is rapidly evolving and it is not possible to predict its long-term consequences on the Company or its clients. Any escalation and expansion of this conflict could have a negative impact on both global and regional conditions and may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Changes in macro-economic factors impacting the oil and gas industry may negatively affect our ability to accurately predict client demand, which could cause us to hold excess or obsolete inventory and experience a reduction in gross margins and financial results.
We cannot accurately predict which or what level of our services and products our clients will need in the future. Orders are placed with our suppliers based on forecasts of client demand and, in some instances, we may establish buffer inventories to accommodate anticipated demand. Our forecasts for client demand are based on multiple assumptions, each of which may introduce errors into the estimates. In addition, many of our suppliers require a longer lead time to provide products than our clients’ demand for delivery of our finished products. If we overestimate client demand, we may allocate resources to the purchase of materials or manufactured products that we may not be able to sell when we expect to, if at all. As a result, we could hold excess or obsolete inventory, which would reduce gross margin and adversely affect financial results. Conversely, if we underestimate client demand or if insufficient manufacturing capacity is available, we could miss revenue opportunities and potentially lose market share and damage our client relationships. In addition, any future significant cancellations or deferrals of service contracts or product orders could materially and adversely affect profit margins, increase product obsolescence and restrict our ability to fund our operations.
Risk factors associated with our international presence
We depend on the results of our international operations, which expose us to risks inherent in doing business abroad.
We conduct our business in over 50 countries. Our operations, and those of our clients, are subject to the various laws, regulations and other legal requirements of those respective countries as well as various risks peculiar to each country, which may include, but are not limited to:
global economic conditions;
political actions and requirements of national governments, including trade restrictions, embargoes, seizure, detention, nationalization and expropriation of assets;
interpretation of tax statutes and requirements of taxing authorities worldwide, including the United States, routine examination by taxing authorities and assessment of additional taxes, penalties and/or interest;
trade and economic sanctions, tariffs or other restrictions imposed by the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States or other countries;
civil unrest;
acts of terrorism;
fluctuations and changes in currency exchange rates (see section below);
the impact of inflation;
difficulty in repatriating foreign currency received in excess of the local currency requirements;
current conditions in oil producing countries such as Venezuela, Nigeria, Libya, Iran and Iraq considering their potential impact on the world markets; and
geopolitical conflicts in the countries or regions we operate in, including the Russia-Ukraine and Middle East conflicts.
Historically, economic downturns and political events have resulted in lower demand for our services and products in certain markets. The continuing instability in North Africa, South America and Ukraine, escalation of military conflict in the Middle East, and the potential for activity from terrorist groups that the U.S. government has cautioned against have further heightened our exposure to international risks. The global economy is highly influenced by public confidence in the geopolitical environment, and the situations in the affected countries and regions, as mentioned above, continue to be highly fluid; therefore, we expect to experience heightened international risks.
From time to time, certain geopolitical conflicts may lead to imposition of economic sanctions and associated export controls applicable to our operations. These sanctions and/or export controls may be imposed against certain countries, companies and individuals and they may restrict or prohibit transactions involving the countries, companies and individuals identified, which may further restrict or prohibit us from providing good or services and/or maintaining operations in the affected jurisdictions.
Our operations may be adversely affected by sanctions, export controls, and similar measures targeting Russia and other countries and territories as well as other responses to Russia’s military conflict in Ukraine.
The ongoing geopolitical conflict between Russia and Ukraine has resulted in the U.S. government, European Union, the United Kingdom and other countries imposing broad-ranging economic sanctions and export control measures against Russia, Belarus, the Crimea Region of Ukraine, the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic and the so-called Luhansk People’s Republic, including, among others:
a prohibition on doing business with certain Russian companies, large financial institutions, government officials and oligarchs;
a prohibition on commercial activities in the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic and the so-called Luhansk People’s Republic;
a commitment by certain countries and the European Union to remove selected Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications, the electronic banking network that connects banks globally;
a ban on imports of Russian crude oil, certain refined petroleum products, and liquefied propane gas originating in or exported from Russia to the European Union, subject to limited exceptions;
a ban on imports of Russian crude oil, liquefied natural gas and coal to the United States;
a ban on new investment in the Russian energy sector;
a prohibition on exporting, selling, or supplying certain categories of services, including engineering-related services, petroleum services and analytical testing services, to persons located in Russia; and
enhanced export controls and trade sanctions targeting Russia’s importation of certain goods and technology, including restrictive measures on the export and re-export of dual-use goods, stricter licensing policy with respect to issuing export licenses, and increased use of “end-use” controls to block or impose licensing requirements on exports.
Due to the international scope of our operations, the Company is subject to various laws and regulations including regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Treasury, the U.S. Department of State, the Bureau of Industry and Security and Office of Foreign Asset Control, as well as equivalent economic sanctions and trade embargo laws of other relevant jurisdictions in which we operate, including the United Kingdom and the European Union. The laws and regulations of these different jurisdictions vary in their application and do not in all instances apply to the same covered persons or prohibit the same activities in every jurisdiction. In addition, the sanctions and embargo laws and regulations for each jurisdiction may be amended to increase or reduce the restrictions they impose and may modify restricted parties lists to add or remove designated individuals or entities. Moreover, the sanctions laws may impose a full blocking or country-wide prohibition or may consist of a more targeted and specific transaction ban or sectoral sanction. Most sanctions regimes also provide that entities majority-owned or controlled by the persons or entities designated on such lists are subject to the same sanctions.
Since the Russia-Ukraine conflict began in February 2022, there have been several sanctions packages imposed by the U.S., the U.K., and the E.U. that impact the Company. The sanctions are complex, numerous and nuanced, requiring close review and assessment as they pertain to our business. Sanctions programs are subject to rapid change, sometimes with immediate effect, and it is possible that new sanctions programs could be established by these and other jurisdictions without warning. The extent of current sanctions measures, not all of which are fully aligned across jurisdictions, further increases operational complexity for our business and increases the risk of making errors in managing day-to-day business activities within the rapidly evolving sanctions environment.
The U.S., U.K., and E.U. continue to adopt new sanctions and enhance existing sanctions programs associated with the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Additional countries or territories, as well as additional persons or entities within or affiliated with those countries or territories, have, and in the future could, become the target of sanctions. Frequent changes in these programs require us to be diligent in ensuring our compliance with sanctions laws. We actively monitor regulatory changes as they pertain to the goods and services we provide and their impact on our business, including our business partners and customers, including through dynamic screening of our business partners globally against restricted parties lists.
Further, the U.S., U.K. and E.U. have increased their focus on sanctions enforcement with respect to the energy sector. Our current or future business partners may be affiliated with persons or entities that are or may in the future become the subject of sanctions or trade embargoes imposed by the U.S., U.K., E.U., and/or other international bodies. If we determine that certain sanctions require us to terminate existing or future contracts to which we, or our subsidiaries, are party, or if we are found to be in violation of applicable sanctions, our results of operations may be adversely affected and/or we may suffer reputational harm.
Although we have policies, procedures and internal controls in place designed to ensure compliance with sanctions laws and regulations, it is possible that an employee, contractor, agent or other intermediary could fail to comply with such policies,
applicable laws and regulations, and we could be held responsible. In addition, regulators have discretion to interpret complex sanctions and may interpret certain sanctions programs and their application to our business differently than we do. Notwithstanding our compliance safeguards, there can be no assurance that we will not be found to have been in violation, particularly as the sanctions and embargo laws and regulations are amended, the lack of clarity or guidance as to the scope of certain laws and regulations, and the possibility of discretionary legal interpretations by regulators that may change over time.
Sanctions and trade embargo laws and regulations are generally subject to a strict liability standard. A party need not know it is violating sanctions and need not intend to violate sanctions to be held liable. We could be subject to significant monetary fines and other civil and/or criminal penalties for violating applicable sanctions or embargo laws even in circumstances where our conduct is consistent with our sanctions-related policies or where our conduct is inadvertent. Such violations could also limit our ability to conduct business, damage our reputation and/or subject us to increased regulatory scrutiny, any of which could result in a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
As the conflict in Ukraine continues and these sanctions may change and be expanded, it could further hinder the Company’s ability to do business in Russia or with certain Russian entities and/or our ability to repatriate cash, which could have an adverse impact on the Company’s financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, in retaliation against new international sanctions and as part of measures to stabilize and support the volatile Russian financial and currency markets, Russian authorities imposed significant currency control measures aimed at restricting the outflow of foreign currency and capital from Russia, imposed various restrictions on transacting with non-Russian parties, banned exports of various products and imposed other economic and financial restrictions.
We have not experienced any material interruptions in our infrastructure, supplies or networks needed to support our operations in Russia or Ukraine. Should future sanctions require us to cease or wind down our Russian operations, our assets located there may be impacted and could become subject to impairment. As of December 31, 2025, the Company’s fixed assets and total assets in Russia were $4.6 million and $16.8 million, respectively. Total assets located in Russia represent approximately 2.8% of the Company’s total assets. Additionally, the Company leases its operating facilities in Russia, and as of December 31, 2025, the contractual obligation to exit these leased facilities is approximately $0.8 million. For the year ended December 31, 2025, revenue attributable to our operations in Russia was $26.2 million, representing approximately 5.0% of the Company’s total revenue. If we discontinue our operations in Russia as a result of expanded sanctions, we could incur employee severance and other associated exit costs of approximately $2.5 million, as required under local laws.
During the year ended December 31, 2025, revenue attributable to the Company’s Ukraine operations and assets located in Ukraine, were immaterial to the Company’s total revenue and total assets.
We have no way to predict the progress or outcome of the conflict in Ukraine or its impacts in Ukraine, Russia or Belarus as the conflict and any resulting government responses, are fluid and beyond our control. The effect on our operations, financial results and cash flows will depend on various factors, including the extent and duration of the conflict, its effects on regional and global economic and geopolitical conditions, and the effect of more expansive or stringent laws, sanctions or trade controls, whether adopted by Western nations or the Russian Federation, on our business, the global economy and global supply chains.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict may also heighten many other risks, any of which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. Such risks include, but are not limited to, adverse effects on global macroeconomic conditions, including increased inflation; increased volatility in the price and demand of oil and natural gas; increased exposure to cyber-attacks; limitations in our ability to implement and execute our business strategy; risks to employees and contractors that we have in the region; disruptions in global supply chains; exposure to foreign currency fluctuations; potential nationalizations and assets seizures in Russia; constraints or disruption in the capital markets and our sources of liquidity; our potential inability to service our remaining performance obligations; and potential contractual breaches and litigation.
Tariffs and other trade measures could adversely affect our business, results of operations, financial position and cash flows.
Our business and results of operations may be adversely affected by uncertainty and changes in U.S. trade policies, including tariffs, trade agreements or other trade restrictions imposed by the U.S. or other governments. Our input costs for raw materials and other goods, such as steel, electronic components, chemical reagents and laboratory equipment, may be adversely affected by tariffs imposed by the U.S. government on products imported into the United States. Additionally, we sell our products internationally and our product sales may be subject to any retaliatory measures by other countries. Any imposition of or increase in tariffs on the goods we purchase or the products we sell could increase our costs and the price of our products and services. To the extent we are unable to pass all or a portion of these cost increases on to our customers, such cost increases could adversely affect our results of operations.
Additional tariffs, further trade restrictions and retaliatory trade measures could disrupt our supply chain and logistics, restrict or limit the availability of goods or supplies, may cause adverse financial impacts due to volatility in foreign exchange rates and interest rates, and inflationary pressures on raw materials. Any potential impact will depend on future developments with respect to trade policy and the results of trade negotiations, all of which are beyond our control. These potential impacts, while uncertain, could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Our results of operations may be significantly affected by foreign currency exchange rate risk.
We are exposed to risks due to fluctuations in currency exchange rates. By the nature of our business, we derive a substantial amount of our revenue from our international operations, where certain of our customer contracts are in foreign currencies that subject us to risks relating to fluctuations in currency exchange rates.
Our results of operations may be adversely affected because our efforts to comply with applicable anti-corruption laws such as the United States’ Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (the “FCPA”) and the United Kingdom’s Anti-Bribery Act (the “ABA”) could restrict our ability to do business in foreign markets relative to our competitors who are not subject to these laws.
We operate in many parts of the world that have experienced governmental corruption to some degree and, in certain circumstances, strict compliance with anti-bribery laws may conflict with local customs and practices. We may be subject to competitive disadvantages to the extent that our competitors are able to secure business, licenses or other preferential treatment by making payments to government officials and others in positions of influence or through other methods that we are prohibited from using.
We are subject to the regulations imposed by the FCPA and the ABA, which generally prohibits us and our intermediaries from making improper payments to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or keeping business. In particular, we may be held liable for actions taken by our strategic or local partners even though our partners are not subject to these laws. Any such violations could result in substantial civil and/or criminal penalties and might adversely affect our business, results of operations or financial condition. In addition, our ability to continue to work in these parts of the world discussed above could be adversely affected if we were found to have violated certain laws, including the FCPA and the ABA.
Risk factors associated with technology advancement
If we are not able to develop or acquire new services or products or our services and products become technologically obsolete, our results of operations may be adversely affected.
The market for our services and products is characterized by changing technology and product introduction. As a result, our success is dependent upon our ability to develop or acquire new services and products on a cost-effective basis and to introduce them into the marketplace in a timely manner. Our future growth and financial performance will depend in part upon our ability to develop, market and integrate new products and services and to accommodate our customer’s preferences along with the rapid pace of technological advancement, including artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Generative artificial intelligence (“genAI”) technologies are becoming increasingly available. As genAI technologies continue to improve, we may not be able to replicate or compete with potential applications relevant to our business, including, for example, enhanced computer modeling of reservoir rock and fluid properties, which could displace some of our current products or services. While we intend to continue committing substantial financial resources and effort to the development or acquisition of new services and products, including those embodying genAI technologies, we may not be able to successfully differentiate our services and products from those of our competitors. Our clients may not consider our proposed services and products to be of value to them; or if the proposed services and products are of a competitive nature, our clients may not view them as superior to our competitors’ services and products. In addition, we may not be able to adapt to evolving markets and technologies, develop or acquire new services or products, or achieve and maintain a competitive market advantage.
If we are unable to continue developing or acquiring competitive services and products in a timely manner in response to changes in technology, our business and operating results may be materially and adversely affected. In addition, continuing development or acquisition of new products inherently carries the risk of inventory obsolescence with respect to our older products.
If we are unable to obtain patents, licenses and other intellectual property rights covering our services and products, our operating results may be adversely affected.
Our success depends, in part, on our ability to obtain patents, licenses and other intellectual property rights covering our services and products. To that end, we have obtained certain patents and intend to continue to seek patents on some of our inventions, services and products. While we have patented some of our key technologies, we do not patent all of our proprietary technology, even when regarded as patentable. The process of seeking patent protection can be long and expensive. There can be no assurance that patents will be issued from currently pending or future applications or that, if patents are issued, they will be of sufficient scope or strength to provide meaningful protection or any commercial advantage to us. In addition, effective copyright and trade secret protection may be unavailable or limited in certain countries. Litigation, which could demand significant financial and management resources, may be necessary to enforce our patents or other intellectual property rights. Also, there can be no assurance that we can obtain licenses or other rights to necessary intellectual property on acceptable terms.
We are subject to cyber security risks. A cyber incident could occur and result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.
The frequency and magnitude of cybersecurity attacks is increasing, and threat actors have become more sophisticated. Cybersecurity attacks are similarly evolving and include without limitation use of malicious software, surveillance, credential stuffing, spear phishing, social engineering, use of deepfakes (i.e., highly realistic synthetic media generated by artificial intelligence), attempts to gain unauthorized access to data, and other electronic security breaches that could lead to disruptions in critical systems, unauthorized release of confidential or otherwise protected information and corruption of data. We may be unable to anticipate, detect or prevent future attacks, particularly as the vectors used by threat actors change frequently or are not readily identifiable until deployed. We may also be unable to investigate or remediate cybersecurity incidents as threat actors are increasingly using techniques designed to circumvent controls, avoid detection, and delete or obfuscate forensic evidence.
Our technologies, systems and networks, and those of our vendors, suppliers and other business partners, may become the target of cyberattacks or information security breaches that could result in the unauthorized release, gathering, monitoring, misuse, loss or destruction of proprietary information, personal information and other data, or other disruption of our business operations. In addition, certain cyber incidents, such as unauthorized surveillance, may remain undetected for an extended period. Our systems and insurance coverage (if any) for protecting against cyber security risks, including cyberattacks, may not be sufficient and may not protect against or cover all of the losses (including potential reputational loss) we may experience. As cyber incidents continue to evolve, particularly with the advent of artificial intelligence, we may be required to expend additional resources to modify or enhance our cybersecurity measures or to investigate and remediate the effects of cyber incidents.
We utilize technologies, controls and procedures, as well as internal staff and external service providers to protect our systems and data, to identify and remediate vulnerabilities and to monitor and respond to threats. However, there can be no assurance that such measures will be sufficient to prevent security breaches from occurring. No security measure is infallible. If we or the third parties with whom we interact were to experience a successful attack, the potential consequences to our business, workforce and the communities in which we operate could be significant, including financial losses, regulatory fines, loss of business, an inability to settle transactions or maintain operations, litigation costs, remediation costs, disruptions related to investigation, and significant damage to our reputation. If our systems for protecting against cyber-attacks prove not to be sufficient, we could be adversely affected by loss or damage of intellectual property, proprietary information, client data, employee data, financial data, our reputation, interruption of business operations, or additional costs to prevent, respond to, or mitigate cyber-attacks. These risks could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation, results of operations, and financial condition.
Risk factors associated with our supply chain, resources, liquidity and capital management
We are subject to the risk of supplier concentration.
Certain of our product lines depend on a limited number of third party suppliers and vendors available in the marketplace. As a result of this concentration in some of our supply chains, our business and operations could be negatively affected if our key suppliers were to experience significant disruptions affecting the price, quality, availability or timely delivery of their products. For example, we have a limited number of vendors for our manufactured product lines. The partial or complete loss of any one of our key suppliers, or a significant adverse change in the relationship with any of these suppliers, through consolidation or otherwise, would limit our ability to manufacture and sell certain of our products.
There are risks relating to our acquisition strategy. If we are unable to successfully integrate and manage businesses that we have acquired and any businesses acquired in the future, our results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.
One of our key business strategies is to acquire technologies, operations and assets that are complementary to our existing business. There are financial, operational and legal risks inherent in any acquisition strategy, including:
increased financial leverage;
ability to obtain additional financing;
increased interest expense; and
difficulties involved in combining disparate company cultures and facilities.
The success of any completed acquisition will depend on our ability to effectively integrate the acquired business into our existing operations. The process of integrating acquired businesses may involve unforeseen difficulties and may require a disproportionate amount of our managerial and financial resources. In addition, possible future acquisitions may be larger and for purchase prices significantly higher than those paid for earlier acquisitions. No assurance can be given that we will be able to continue to identify additional suitable acquisition opportunities, negotiate acceptable terms, obtain financing for acquisitions on acceptable terms or successfully acquire identified targets. Our failure to achieve consolidation savings, to incorporate the acquired businesses and assets into our existing operations successfully or to minimize any unforeseen operational difficulties could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operation.
We may be unable to attract and retain skilled and technically knowledgeable employees, which could adversely affect our business.
Our success depends upon attracting and retaining highly skilled professionals and other technical personnel. A number of our employees are highly skilled engineers, geologists and highly trained technicians, and our failure to continue to attract and retain such individuals could adversely affect our ability to compete in the oilfield services industry. In periods of high utilization, there may be a shortage of skilled and technical personnel available in the market, potentially compounding the difficulty of attracting and retaining these employees. As a result, our business, results of operations and financial condition may be materially adversely affected.
We require a significant amount of cash to service our indebtedness, make capital expenditures, fund our working capital requirements and pay our dividend, and our ability to generate cash may depend on factors beyond our control.
Our ability to make payments on and to refinance our indebtedness, to fund planned capital expenditures, and pay our dividend depends, in part, on our ability to generate cash in the future. This ability is, to a certain extent, subject to general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory and other factors that are beyond our control.
No assurance can be given that we will generate sufficient cash flows from operations or that future borrowings will be available to us in an amount sufficient to enable us to service and repay our indebtedness or to fund our other liquidity needs. If we are unable to satisfy our debt obligations, we may have to undertake alternative financing plans, such as refinancing or restructuring our indebtedness, selling assets, reducing or delaying capital investments or seeking to raise additional capital. We cannot assure that any refinancing or debt restructuring would be possible or, if possible, would be completed on favorable or acceptable terms, that any assets could be sold or that, if sold, the timing of the sales and the amount of proceeds realized from those sales would be favorable to us or that additional financing could be obtained on acceptable terms.
Disruptions in the capital and credit markets could adversely affect our ability to refinance our indebtedness, including our ability to borrow under our existing revolving credit facility. Banks that are party to our existing revolving credit facility may not be able to meet their funding commitments to us if they experience shortages of capital and liquidity or if they experience excessive volumes of borrowing requests from us and other borrowers within a short period of time.
We may have greater difficulty accessing capital in the future due to the adoption of more stringent climate change policies as shareholders, bondholders and institutional lenders who currently invest in fossil-fuel energy companies or service companies such as ours express increased concern about the potential adverse effects of climate change and therefore elect to shift some or all of their investable or loanable funds into alternative energy investments.
Risk factors associated with health, safety and the environment
We are subject to a variety of environmental and occupational safety and health laws and regulations, which may result in increased costs and significant liability to our business.
We are subject to a variety of stringent governmental laws and regulations, both in the United States and foreign countries, pertaining to protection of the environment, and occupational health and safety.
Compliance with environmental legal requirements in the United States at the federal, state or local levels may require acquiring permits to conduct regulated activities, incurring capital expenditures to limit or prevent emissions, discharges and any unauthorized releases, and complying with stringent practices to handle, recycle and dispose of certain wastes. These laws and regulations could require us to acquire permits or other authorizations to conduct regulated activities, install and maintain costly equipment and pollution control technologies, impose specific safety and health standards addressing work protection, or to incur costs or liabilities to mitigate or remediate pollution conditions caused by our operations or attributable to former owners or operators. Certain of these laws and regulations may impose liability on a joint and several and strict liability basis requiring the remediation of historical contamination not directly associated with our operations as well as more recent releases. Failure to comply with applicable laws and regulations could result in the assessment of monetary fines and other civil and/or criminal penalties, the imposition of remedial or corrective action obligations, the occurrence of delays or cancellations in permitting or development of projects, or the suspension or cessation of some or all of our operations.
Environmental laws and regulations, and their interpretation, frequently change, and have tended to become more stringent over time. Our costs for compliance may not be fully recoverable from our clients and, thus, could reduce net income. New, modified or stricter enforcement of environmental laws and regulations could be adopted or implemented that significantly increase our compliance costs, pollution mitigation costs, or the cost of any remediation of environmental contamination that may become necessary, and these costs could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operation, or cash flows. Additionally, our clients are also subject to many of the same laws and regulations relating to environmental protection and occupational safety and health in the United States and in foreign countries where we operate. To the extent existing environmental laws and regulations or any new or more stringently enforced environmental legal requirements significantly increase our clients’ compliance costs, pollution mitigation costs or remedial costs, our clients could elect to delay, restrict or cancel drilling, exploration or production programs, which could reduce demand for our products and services and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows.
Historically, our worker safety compliance costs have not had a material adverse effect on our results of operations; however, there can be no assurance that such costs will not be material in the future or that such future compliance will not have a material adverse effect on our business or results of operations.
Legislative and regulatory initiatives relating to oil and gas development and the potential for related litigation could result in increased costs and additional operating restrictions or delays for our clients, which could reduce demand for our products or services.
Environmental laws and regulations could limit our clients’ exploration and production activities. For example, hydraulic fracturing continues to attract considerable public and governmental attention, both in the United States and in foreign countries, resulting in various controls applied to fracturing activities or locations where such activities may be performed. Although we do not directly engage in drilling or hydraulic fracturing activities, we provide products and services to operators in the oil and gas industry. For example, certain states have adopted, or are considering adopting, legal requirements that could impose more stringent disclosure, permitting and/or well construction requirements on hydraulic fracturing operations, and local governments may also seek to adopt ordinances within their jurisdictions regulating the time, place and manner of hydraulic fracturing activities.
U.S., foreign federal, regional, state or local governmental actions aimed at species conservation, preventing hydraulic fracturing activities, or otherwise limiting oil and gas operations or production in certain locations, could indirectly cause us to incur additional costs, cause our or our oil and natural gas exploration and production customers’ operations to become subject to operating restrictions or bans, result in new difficulties obtaining permits or other authorizations, and limit future development activity in affected areas. To the extent any such existing or future legal requirements result in increased costs or restrictions or cancellation in the operation of our clients, such developments could reduce demand for our products and services and have an indirect material adverse effect on our business.
See Part I, Item 1. Business, “Environment and Climate” and “Occupational Safety and Health Regulations” for further discussion on environmental and worker safety and health matters.
We are subject to compliance with governmental regulations associated with climate change, energy conservation measures, or initiatives that stimulate demand for alternative forms of energy that could result in increased costs, limit the
areas in which our clients’ oil and natural gas production may occur and reduce demand for our services, which may adversely affect our business and results of operations.
Our clients in the oil and gas industry are also subject to many laws and regulations relating to environmental and natural resource protection in the United States and in foreign countries where we operate, and many are required to obtain permits and other authorizations for their operations. In particular, we, our third-party vendors that supply us with goods and services in support of our business, and our clients are subject to governmental, and public, political and scientific attention focus on risks associated with the threat of climate change arising from the emission of GHG. Various governments have adopted or are considering adopting legislation, regulations or other regulatory initiatives, including the Paris Agreement, the Europe Climate Law, that are focused on such areas as GHG cap and trade programs, carbon taxes, reporting and tracking programs, and restriction of emissions at national or local levels in jurisdictions where our clients operate. Compliance with existing, or any new or amended legal requirements that are placed into effect and applicable in areas where we or our clients conduct operations, could result in our or our clients’ incurring significant additional expense and operating restrictions which could result in reduced demand for our products and services.
New or amended legislation, executive actions, regulations or other regulatory initiatives that impose more stringent oil and gas sector requirements or fees on GHG emissions or restrict the areas in which this sector may produce oil and natural gas or generate GHG emissions could result in increased compliance costs or costs of producing fossil fuels.
To the extent that climate change alters weather patterns, it can impact the demand for our customers’ products. Our operations and the operations of our customers are also susceptible to the physical effects of climate change, such as increased frequency or severity of storm systems, hurricanes, droughts, floods, extreme winter weather, or geologic/geophysical conditions. Such events may impact our operations directly and indirectly, and could also result in increased insurance costs.
Additionally, political, financial and litigation risks, as well as stakeholder pressures may result in our clients restricting, delaying or canceling operational or production activities, incurring liability for infrastructure damages as a result of climatic changes, restricting access to capital, or impairing the ability to continue to operate in an economic manner, which could reduce demand for our products and services. Fuel conservation measures, alternative fuel requirements and increasing consumer demand for, or legislative incentives supporting, alternative energy sources (such as wind, solar, geothermal and tidal) could also reduce demand for oil and natural gas. The occurrence of one or more of these developments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operation.
Our customers may also face litigation risks based on allocations of their contribution to climate change. Consequently, to the extent one or more of these climate-related events are incurred by us, our third party vendors, or our clients, any of us could incur increased costs, we could incur disruptions to our operations as a result of our vendor’s inability to supply us with goods and services, and our clients in particular could elect to delay, restrict or cancel drilling, exploration or production programs, which could reduce demand for our products and services, any of which developments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows.
Increasing attention to sustainability and corporate responsibility matters may impact our business.
Regulations associated with sustainability and corporate responsibility have been, and are, being implemented and we anticipate that these regulatory requirements will continue to expand in markets where we operate. As a result, numerous regulations have been made, and are likely to continue to be made, to monitor and limit emissions of GHGs or implement laws, policies or regulatory initiatives that may contribute to energy conservation measures, stimulate demand for alternative forms of energy or limit areas where fossil fuel production may occur, which may translate into reduced demand for our services.
Business operations may also subject us or our customers to state-mandated climate disclosures. For instance, the Climate-Related Financial Risk Act (“CRFRA”) in California requires the disclosure of a climate-related financial risk report (in line with the Task Force on the Climate-related Financial Disclosures recommendations or equivalent disclosure requirements under the International Sustainability Standards Board’s climate-relate disclosure standards) every other year for public and private companies that are “doing business in California” and have total annual revenue of at least $500 million. Reporting under this law was set to begin in 2026 and the ultimate impact of the law on our business is uncertain. In November 2025, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals granted an injunction pending appeal that stays enforcement of the CRFRA. A separate law, SB 253 directed the California Air Resources Board (“CARB”) to create rules relating to GHG reporting. CARB’s regulations require the reporting of Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions starting August 10, 2026, for companies that are “doing business in California” and have total annual revenue of at least $1 billion. Absent clarification or revisions to these laws, alongside the compliance, may result in increased costs and restrictions on access to capital.
Investor and societal expectations regarding voluntary corporate responsibility disclosures, and consumer demand for alternative forms of energy may result in increased costs, reduced demand for our services, reduced profits, increased risks of governmental investigations and private party litigation, and negative impacts on our stock price and access to capital markets. These pressures could have similar impacts on our customers, and therefore, indirectly impact our operations by decreasing demand for our services. Our managerial ESG Steering Team is the primary group for overseeing and managing our sustainability initiatives. Team members review the implementation and effectiveness of our sustainability programs and policies and report on these matters to the Board of Directors. While we have sought voluntary aspirational goals for GHG emission reductions from base year 2018, we note that even with our governance oversight in place, we may not be able to adequately identify or manage sustainability-related risks and opportunities, which may include failing to achieve sustainability-related aspirational goals. We have published voluntary disclosures regarding sustainability matters under an annual Sustainability Report and the Global Reporting Initiative, an international independent standards organization. From time to time, statements in those voluntary disclosures may be based on aspirational expectations and assumptions that may or may not be representative of current or actual risks or events or forecasts of expected risks or events, including the costs associated therewith. Such expectations and assumptions may be prone to error or subject to misinterpretation given the lack of an established single approach to identifying, measuring and reporting on many sustainability matters.
We are subject to the physical effects of climate change, which may adversely affect our business and results of operations.
We operate from locations around the globe and provide services in coastal regions and coastal cities and services related to marine shipping activities of our clients. These locations and activities are susceptible to the physical effects of climate change, such as increased frequency or severity of tropical storm systems, hurricanes, droughts, floods, extreme winter weather, or geologic/geophysical conditions that may result in:
decreased or lost production capacity;
loss of or reduced supply chain availability;
temporary closure of locations due to electricity outages, damages or disruptions caused by extreme weather events;
displacement of employees; and
increase in premium for or reduced ability to obtain insurance for property, business interruption and liability.
See Item 1A. Risk Factors, “Risk factors associated with health, safety and the environment” for further discussion on environmental matters.
Risk factors associated with our common stock
Provisions in our certificate of incorporation, bylaws and Delaware law may discourage a takeover attempt even if a takeover might be beneficial to our stockholders.
Provisions contained in our Certificate of Incorporation and our Bylaws, which we refer to herein as our “certificate of incorporation” and “bylaws,” respectively, could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us. Provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws impose various procedural and other requirements, which could make it more difficult for stockholders to effect certain corporate actions. For example, our certificate of incorporation authorizes our board of directors to determine the rights, preferences, privileges and restrictions of unissued series of preferred stock without any vote or action by our stockholders. Thus, our board of directors can authorize and issue shares of preferred stock with voting or conversion rights that could adversely affect the voting or other rights of holders of our capital stock. These rights may have the effect of delaying or deterring a change of control of our company. Additionally, our bylaws establish limitations on the removal of directors and on the ability of our stockholders to call special meetings and include advance notice requirements for nominations for election to our board of directors and for proposing matters that can be acted upon at stockholder meetings. These provisions could limit the price that certain investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of our common stock.
Our certificate of incorporation designates the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or agents.
Our certificate of incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, be the sole and exclusive forum for
(i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers, employees or agents to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us or any director or officer or other employee or agent of ours arising pursuant to any provision of the Delaware General Corporation Law, our certificate of incorporation or our bylaws, or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us or any director or officer or other employee or agent of ours that is governed by the internal affairs doctrine, in each such case subject to such Court of Chancery having personal jurisdiction over the indispensable parties named as defendants therein.
The exclusive forum provision would not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”) or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. To the extent that any such claims may be based upon federal law claims, Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. Furthermore, Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.
The enforceability of similar choice of forum provisions in other companies’ certificates of incorporation or similar governing documents has been challenged in legal proceedings, and it is possible that a court could find the choice of forum provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable, including with respect to claims arising under the U.S. federal securities laws.
Our ability to maintain effective internal controls over financial reporting may be insufficient to allow us to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud, and this could cause our financial statements to become materially misleading and adversely affect the trading price of our common stock.
The Company’s internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Our internal control over financial reporting includes policies and procedures that (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of assets of the Company; (ii) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the Company are made only in accordance with authorization of management; and (iii) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the Company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements, including the possibility of human error, the circumvention or overriding of controls, or fraud. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with internal policies or procedures may deteriorate. Disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting will not prevent every accounting error or every instance of fraud. Further, the design of disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting are governed by resource constraints, and the benefits of such controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in every control system, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within a Company have been detected. For example, if two individuals were able to circumvent our internal controls through collusion and commit fraud, the Company’s internal controls may not detect the fraud, which could potentially reach a material level if undetected.
Our ability to maintain effective internal controls over financial reporting also depends on the efforts, skills, and performance of our accounting and finance staff. The loss of key personnel or our inability to attract and retain qualified accounting personnel could adversely affect our ability to maintain effective internal controls and to prepare accurate financial statements in a timely manner.
The inability of the Company to maintain the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting, including any failure to implement required new or improved controls, or any difficulty we encounter in their implementation, could result in a material weakness in the control environment. Any material weakness could affect investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial statements. As a result, our ability to raise capital through the issuance of debt or equity, or our ability to obtain financing on favorable terms, could be materially and adversely affected. This, in turn, could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and the market value of our stock and require us to incur additional costs to improve our internal control systems and procedures. In addition, perceptions of the Company among customers, suppliers, lenders, investors, securities analysts, and others could be adversely affected.
Risk factors associated with the Redomestication Transaction
The expected benefits of the Redomestication Transaction may not be realized.
There can be no assurance that all of the anticipated benefits of the Redomestication Transaction will be achieved. Achieving the anticipated benefits of the Redomestication Transaction is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including factors that we do not and cannot control. In addition, if the expected benefits of the Redomestication Transaction do not meet expectations of investors or securities analysts, the price of our common stock may decline.
If the Redomestication Transaction does not qualify as a “reorganization” under Section 368(a) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, Core Lab Shareholders may be required to pay U.S. federal income taxes.
It is intended that the steps in the Redomestication Transaction qualify as a form of “reorganization” within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). Although Vinson & Elkins L.L.P., Core Lab’s U.S. tax counsel, provided an opinion that the Redomestication Transaction should qualify as a form of reorganization within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the Code, and Core Laboratories N.V., Core Laboratories Luxembourg S.A. and Core Laboratories Inc. may have or intend to file tax returns consistent with this intended tax treatment, this tax treatment is not free from doubt. Your tax advisor may not agree with our intended tax treatment and the IRS may assert, or a court may sustain, a contrary position.
If the Redomestication Transaction did not qualify as a form of reorganization within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the Code, Core Lab Shareholders would generally recognize taxable gain or loss upon their exchange of stock pursuant to the Redomestication Transaction, as applicable.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVE D STAFF COMMENTS
None.
ITEM 1C. CYBER SECURITY
The Company maintains information systems which contain personal data, financial reports and proprietary data. As a result, we are exposed to cybersecurity threats which could result in loss of or damage to our intellectual property, proprietary information, client data and reputation, or interruption of our business operations, or additional costs to prevent, respond to, or mitigate cyber-attacks.
Our Board of Directors is responsible for oversight of the risks that the Company faces, including cybersecurity threats. Our operating divisions and management teams help identify risks that are relevant to the Company during our periodic business planning and review cycle and rank these risks in relation to the achievement of business objectives. We understand cybersecurity threats to be dynamic and to intersect with various other enterprise risks within the organization. We have therefore integrated cybersecurity risk into our overall risk management program.
As a result, in addition to our information technology policies and procedures, we have implemented cybersecurity processes that aim to address, among other things, information security, password security, third party vetting, security incident response and vulnerability management. Our cybersecurity procedures include requiring multiple authentication factors prior to granting access to our assets, launching endpoint security software to guard against malware, viruses, and other cyber-attacks, use of third-party software to automate IT system monitoring for unusual or suspicious activity, conducting annual cybersecurity training for all employees, and providing cybersecurity information to employees through newsletters and fliers. We utilize third-party consultants to assist us with endpoint detection and response and routinely conduct penetration testing of our network infrastructure. Our consultants also provide digital forensics analysis of our systems, as needed. Additionally, we have sought to align our cybersecurity risk management in accordance with the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework.
We recognize that third-party service providers may introduce cybersecurity risks. In an effort to mitigate these risks, we assess third party cybersecurity controls through a cybersecurity questionnaire and include security and privacy addendums to our contracts where applicable.
We have established a permanent management position of Director of Cybersecurity and IT Governance that reports directly to the Chief Financial Officer. Our current Director of Cybersecurity and IT Governance, has an undergraduate degree in computer science and is a Certified Information Systems Security Professional. He possesses over 20 years of IT experience with more than 10 years in managerial positions and has been actively involved in IT security related projects, initiatives, audits and associated program management in the last ten years. As part of our cybersecurity incident response plan, we have established a dedicated incident response team to assess and manage risks arising from cybersecurity threats, consisting of our
Director of Cybersecurity and IT Governance and various members of senior management, including our Chief Financial Officer and General Counsel.
The Company also maintains an IT Steering Committee as part of its control environment, which meets regularly to address matters pertaining to the Company’s information technology systems. The IT Steering Committee is led by the Company’s three IT directors, one of which is the Director of Cybersecurity and IT Governance, and is represented by leaders from corporate departments and operations. In each meeting, the Director of Cybersecurity and IT Governance provides an overview of cybersecurity matters, including status update on threat reduction initiatives undertaken by the Company and future initiatives under consideration.
The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing our cybersecurity threat risks and receives updates during its quarterly meetings from our Director of Cybersecurity and IT Governance. At each meeting, the Audit Committee is briefed on matters pertaining to our exposure to material privacy and cybersecurity risks, as well as risks that are deemed to have a moderate or higher business impact, even if immaterial. The Director of Cybersecurity and IT Governance also routinely briefs senior management on such matters as they arise.
In addition, we have established a Data Privacy Committee coordinated by our Data Privacy Officer and represented by seven other committee members from various corporate functional departments. The objective of the Committee is to ensure that personal data is protected and handled in accordance with applicable law and Core Lab policies.
As of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, we are not aware of any cybersecurity incident or cybersecurity threat that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our business strategy, results of operations or financial condition. However, we understand that cybersecurity threats are continually evolving, and the possibility of future discovery of cybersecurity incidents remains. Please see “Item 1A. Risk Factors” for additional information about cybersecurity risks.
ITEM 2. PR OPERTIES
Currently, we have over 70 offices (totaling approximately 2.9 million square feet of space) in more than 50 countries. In these locations, we lease approximately 1.4 million square feet and own approximately 1.5 million square feet. We serve our worldwide clients through five Advanced Technology Centers (“ATCs”) that are located in Aberdeen, Scotland; Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Houston, Texas; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; and Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The ATCs provide support for our more than 50 regional specialty centers located throughout the global energy producing provinces. In addition, our more significant manufacturing facilities are located in Frépillon , France, which is included in our Reservoir Description operating segment, Godley, Texas, Red Deer, Alberta, Canada, and Pyle, Wales, which are included in our Production Enhancement operating segment. Our facilities are adequate for our current operations; however, expansion into new facilities or the replacement or modification of existing facilities may be required to accommodate future growth.
