Nine Energy Service has introduced its new hybrid frac plug. Composed of both composite and dissolvable materials, the Pincer is designed to work across a range of geographic basins, wellbore temperatures and environments — from freshwater to high-salinity. For operators, it combines the advantages of composite and dissolvable plugs into one solution.

Highly adaptable, the Pincer is engineered to reliably set, hold, and achieve zonal isolation. Then, specific components predictably dissolve in the wellbore, delivering industry-leading millout performance. Compared to an approximate average of nine minutes per plug for standard composite plugs, the Pincer’s average millout time is under three minutes per plug. Due to the significant reduction in material, operators can perform millout operations with a single bit, eliminating the need to make a bit trip. This not only reduces costs and non-productive time but also creates a significant risk reduction.

In terms of product categories, the new Pincer falls between Nine’s popular Scorpion Composite Plug, which is known industry-wide for its reliability, and the Stinger Dissolvable Plug, one of the shortest and most dependable dissolvable plugs on the market today.

While the Pincer is now being formally introduced, it’s already proven itself in the field. One customer deployed 50 with an average treating pressure of 10,500 psi and an average differential of approximately 7,500 psi, achieving an average millout of 3.7 minutes per plug. Another customer, working under similar conditions, achieved an average mill out time of 2.2 minutes per plug.

“The Pincer really complements our product offering and we are thrilled to officially introduce it to the market,” said Nick Pottmeyer, President of Completion Tools at Nine. “For efficiency, performance and savings, we believe this revolutionary plug will be a game changer for our customers.”