UPDATE 1-Liberty Oilfield Services posts smaller loss on demand recovery

Adds details on results, background

Feb 4 (Reuters) - Liberty Oilfield Services LBRT.N on Thursday said its fourth-quarter loss narrowed from the third, helped by an uptick in demand for its equipment and fracking services following a pandemic-induced disruption in drilling activity.

Oil prices rose more than 20% in the last three months of 2020, prompting producers to start drilling and completing some wells, and boosted demand for equipment and services.

The company said average active fleets (the equipment, labor, vehicles and materials needed for hydraulic fracturing) rose 68% in the quarter, sequentially.

Liberty Oilfield, which last month completed the acquisition of rival Schlumberger's SLB.N shale fracking business, reported a 75% rise in revenue to $258 million, above estimates of $192.18 million.

The Denver-based company's net loss stood at $48.2 million, or 41 cents per share, in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with a loss of $49.0 million, or 41 cents per share, in the third quarter.

(Reporting by Rithika Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)

((Rithika.Krishna@thomsonreuters.com;))