What Terrex Seismic does

Terrex Seismic is an Australian onshore seismic acquisition contractor that delivers 2D, 3D and 4D seismic surveys to oil & gas, mining, and emerging-energy customers. The company is headquartered in Banyo, Brisbane (Queensland) and was originally established in 1981 as Geosystems; it was purchased by Steve Tobin in 1997 and rebranded as Terrex Seismic. It was most recently acquired by SAExploration Holdings, Inc. (SAE) on 2 September 2025 and now operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary under the Terrex brand with access to SAE's global resources.

The operating stack centers on physically intensive seismic acquisition: Vibroseis, impulse and drilled source methods paired with a nodal recording fleet of more than 40,000 channels and 40+ vibrator units, complemented by the proprietary Edge+ low-impact survey design and EnviroVibes technology for environmentally sensitive terrain. Service scope spans survey planning and permitting, acquisition execution, QA/QC, in-house processing, microseismic/passive monitoring, and provision of remote field camps. The company holds ISO 14001 (environmental) and ISO 45001 (occupational health and safety) certifications issued by SAI Global.

Terrex runs a project-based enterprise model, sourcing work via direct field sales and industry relationships, executing under fixed-price or cost-plus contracts with majors such as Santos, BHP, Origin Energy, Beach Energy, Rio Tinto and Anglo American, and increasingly diversifying into natural hydrogen, helium, CCS and geothermal. Headcount is 51–100, the company reports 100% repeat-client engagement and over 1,000 completed surveys, and a stated recent international push includes a 2D contract with Advance International Exploration in Papua New Guinea.

Name

Terrex Seismic

Legal name

Terrex Pty Ltd

Website

https://terrexseismic.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Terrex Seismic is an Australian onshore seismic acquisition contractor (Banyo, QLD) delivering 2D, 3D and 4D surveys using Vibroseis, impulse and drilled sources for oil & gas, mining and emerging-energy clients including Santos, BHP and Rio Tinto.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Seismic Acquisition Services

NAICS

Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360), Support Activities for Mining (213)

SIC

Oil & Gas Field Exploration Services (1382), Oil & Gas Field Services, Nec (1389)

akta.pro primary industry

Seismic & Geoscience Services (Acquisition, Processing, Interpretation) (EUALABAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Mineral Exploration & Geoscience Services (Geology, Geophysics, Geochemistry, Resource Modeling) (IMAKAKAA)

Keywords

• Seismic acquisition services
• Geophysical survey solutions
• Onshore seismic data
• Vibroseis acquisition
• Nodal seismic recording

Headquarters

HQ city

Brisbane

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Seismic Acquisition Services: Project-based seismic data acquisition services providing 2D, 3D, and 4D seismic surveys for onshore and transition zone environments. Revenue is generated through fixed-price or cost-plus contracts with major energy companies.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Terrex Seismic provides onshore and transition zone seismic data acquisition services (2D, 3D, and 4D surveys) to oil & gas, mining, hydrogen, CCS, and geothermal customers. The company delivers end-to-end geophysical solutions spanning survey planning and permitting, vibroseis/impulse/drilled-source data acquisition, nodal recording, QA/QC, data processing and interpretation, plus ancillary field services (microseismic monitoring, project management, and mobile camp provisioning). Operations are executed with a fleet of 40+ vibrator units and over 40,000 channels of recording equipment.

Product overview

Terrex Seismic is a technology-driven, full-service seismic acquisition company offering a unified portfolio of geophysical solutions. The core offering comprises seismic data acquisition services (2D, 3D, and 4D surveys) supported by integrated Survey Planning and Design, Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) Systems, and Processing and Geophysics Services. Additional services include microseismic monitoring, field project management, and mobile field camp provision. The company specializes in low impact seismic technologies including Vibroseis, Impulse and Drilled Sources, and nodal acquisition, serving sectors such as Hydrogen, Mining, Minerals, Conventional Resources, Reservoir optimisation, CCS, and Geothermal.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Onshore and Transition Zone 2D/3D/4D Seismic Data Acquisition Services High-quality, low-cost onshore and transition-zone 2D, 3D, and 4D seismic data acquisition services delivered using vibroseis, impulse, and drilled sources with 40+ vibrators and 40,000+ channels of nodal recording equipment, targeting oil & gas, mining, hydrogen, CCS, and geothermal customers.
• Survey Planning and Design Services Comprehensive survey planning, design and permitting services, including the proprietary Edge+ design approach that minimises impact on farming and culturally sensitive lands while preserving optimal 3D receiver line distribution.
• Seismic Data Processing and Geophysics Services Fast-turnaround seismic data processing solutions for quality assurance and tailored subsurface interpretation, enabling clients to extract insights from complex geological datasets across various subsurface targets.
• Associated Field Services (Microseismic Monitoring, Field Project Management, Mobile Camps) Auxiliary seismic-related services including microseismic/passive seismic monitoring, field project management including permitting, and provision and management of mobile field camps for remote and all-terrain operations.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% repeat client rate indicating high customer satisfaction
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• SAExploration Holdings, Inc.flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 September 2025SAE completed acquisition of Terrex Seismic, marking a strategic move to expand into the Australian and Asia-Pacific seismic market. The acquisition provides Terrex with global support while SAE gains access to Terrex's specialized onshore expertise and regional presence. Both companies share similar cultures and values, with Terrex continuing to operate under its own brand.
• Advance International Exploration (AIE)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 July 2025Terrex contracted by AIE to complete a 2D seismic survey in PNG Western Province. This represents Terrex's first international contract in nearly 15 years as part of their new international expansion strategy.
• Papua New Guinea Chamber of Resources & Energy (PNG CORE)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 January 2025Terrex Seismic became a member of PNG CORE to strengthen collaboration with key stakeholders in PNG's resource and energy sector, supporting responsible exploration and development that benefits industry and local communities.
• Agri LabourcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAgri Labour manages line crew recruitment for Terrex Seismic projects throughout Australia, providing workforce sourcing for seismic acquisition operations.
• University of Queensland (UQ Global Partnerships)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTerrex hosted a session with Vietnam's Vinacomin staff at UQ, showcasing seismic technology value in mining applications. Session arranged through Austrade.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• SAExploration Holdings: Parent company since September 2025 and a global land and shallow-water seismic acquisition contractor. Directly comparable as an onshore seismic operator with overlapping service offerings and customer base; the acquisition consolidates the two as one combined platform.
• BGP (CNPC subsidiary): World's largest land seismic contractor and a division of China National Petroleum Corporation, offering onshore 2D/3D/4D seismic acquisition globally with significant vibroseis and nodal fleet capacity — competes with Terrex in the Asia-Pacific land seismic market.
• CGG: Global geoscience major with multi-client seismic data libraries and acquisition services across land and marine; competes in the broader seismic services market and is a relevant comparison for Terrex's geophysical processing and data product strategy.
• TGS: Global multi-client geoscience data company with extensive seismic and subsurface libraries. Competes in the broader geophysical data and acquisition value chain, particularly for processing and interpretation adjacencies to Terrex's core acquisition services.
• SLB (Schlumberger) — WesternGeco: WesternGeco, part of SLB, is the largest integrated seismic acquisition and processing services provider globally, with land and marine operations. Represents the upper-bound competitor in onshore seismic and a benchmark for fleet scale and technology depth.

Direct peers

• Dawson Geophysical: US-based onshore seismic acquisition contractor with a similar land 3D/4D seismic service offering, vibroseis fleet model, and project-based commercial structure serving oil & gas exploration clients.
• Velseis: Australian-based seismic acquisition and processing contractor — the most direct domestic competitor to Terrex, offering comparable onshore 2D/3D seismic services to the same Australian oil & gas and coal exploration customer base.
• HiSeis: Australian-based hard rock and mineral exploration seismic acquisition specialist, directly comparable in using seismic for mining/minerals exploration — overlaps with Terrex's mining and hard rock customer segment (BHP, Rio Tinto, Anglo American).

Emerging players

• ION Geophysical: Geophysical technology and services company offering seismic acquisition planning, imaging, and nodal technology (e.g., Marlin). Comparable in seismic acquisition support and nodal systems, and an enabling technology partner/competitor to contractors like Terrex.
• DUG Technology: Perth-based geoscience software and high-performance computing company specializing in seismic imaging and processing. A regional comparable in geophysical data interpretation, and a potential partner or competitor for the processing component of Terrex's service offering.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/terrexseismic

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Terrex Seismic