Oilfield service companies do not expect their businesses will get a major activity boost from oil prices in the second half of this year, but demand is robust enough that they will be able to raise fees, executives said. “We are well structured for the $45 to $55 a barrel range,” Andy Hendricks, chief executive of drilling and fracking services provider Patterson-UTI Energy (PTEN.O), said in a phone interview on Thursday. “We expect the rig count for us to go up slightly throughout the year.” Patterson is upgrading seven rigs at a cost of $8 million, an expense justified by contracted rates of slightly above $20,000 per day. One rig already has been delivered, and the remaining six will be delivered by December. Rival Helmerich & Payne Inc (HP.N) expects oil CLc1 to remain below $50 a barrel through year-end, but still sees opportunities to increase […]