ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) said July 20 it awarded Baker Hughes Inc. (NYSE: BHI) a license to its Alternate Path technology to ensure full gravel pack in cased and openhole completions.

Alternate Path is a sand-control completion technology developed by ExxonMobil to improve reliability of sand-prone production wells. The technology provides alternate flow paths in the downhole tool used for packing gravel in the producing sections of a well.

The agreement includes a limited international license for the Alternate Path technology patent portfolio. The license allows Baker Hughes to produce and deploy Alternate Path technology and gravel packing services for ExxonMobil affiliates worldwide and also for projects in which the company has an interest.

“Alternate Path technology uses a field-proven design that is widely accepted by the industry,” Zac Crouch, vice president of completions and wellbore intervention at Baker Hughes, said in a statement.

Crouch said the agreement extends Baker Hughe's sand-control portfolio, which helps operators reduce uncertainty and maximize sand-free production.