Organization and Operations	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2014
Notes to Financial Statements [Abstract]
Organization and Operations	NOTE A – ORGANIZATION AND OPERATIONS We are a geographically diversified oil and gas services company, focused on completion fluids and associated products and services, water management, frac flowback, production well testing, offshore rig cooling, compression services and equipment, and selected offshore services including well plugging and abandonment, decommissioning, and diving. We also have a limited domestic oil and gas production business. We were incorporated in Delaware in 1981 and are composed of five reporting segments organized into four divisions – Fluids, Production Testing, Compression, and Offshore. Unless the context requires otherwise, when we refer to “we,” “us,” and “our,” we are describing TETRA Technologies, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries on a consolidated basis. Our Fluids Division manufactures and markets clear brine fluids, additives, and associated products and services to the oil and gas industry for use in well drilling, completion, and workover operations in the United States and in certain countries in Latin America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The division also markets liquid and dry calcium chloride products manufactured at its production facilities or purchased from third-party suppliers to a variety of markets outside the energy industry. The Fluids Division also provides North American onshore oil and gas operators with comprehensive water management services. Our Production Testing Division provides frac flowback, production well testing, offshore rig cooling, and other associated services in many of the major oil and gas producing regions in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, as well as in certain basins in certain regions in South America, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Australia. Our Compression Division is a provider of compression services and equipment for natural gas and oil production, gathering, transportation, processing, and storage. The Compression Division also sells standard and custom-designed compressor packages and oilfield fluid pump systems, and provides aftermarket services and compressor package parts and components manufactured by third-party suppliers. The Compression Division provides these compression services and equipment to a broad base of natural gas and oil exploration and production, midstream, transmission, and storage companies operating throughout many of the onshore producing regions of the United States as well as in a number of foreign countries, including Mexico, Canada, and Argentina. As a result of the August 4, 2014, acquisition of Compressor Systems, Inc. ("CSI") (the "CSI Acquisition"), we have significantly expanded the scope of our Compression Division. Our Offshore Division consists of two operating segments: Offshore Services and Maritech. The Offshore Services segment provides: (1) downhole and subsea services such as well plugging and abandonment and workover services; (2) decommissioning and certain construction services utilizing heavy lift barges and various cutting technologies with regard to offshore oil and gas production platforms and pipelines; and (3) conventional and saturation diving services. The Maritech segment is a limited oil and gas production operation. During 2011 and the first quarter of 2012, Maritech sold substantially all of its oil and gas producing property interests. Maritech’s operations consist primarily of the ongoing abandonment and decommissioning associated with its remaining offshore wells and production platforms. Maritech intends to acquire a significant portion of these services from the Offshore Division’s Offshore Services segment. In late 2014, a significant decrease in oil and natural gas commodity prices has lowered the capital expenditure and operating plans of many of our customers, creating additional uncertainty regarding the expected demand for our products and services and the resulting cash flows from operating activities for the foreseeable future. In addition, the availability of new borrowings in the current capital markets is becoming more limited and costly. Accordingly, we have implemented strategic cost reduction steps to adjust our cost structure in the current environment. In addition, we are considering certain asset sales and financing transactions with a view of generating additional cash resources to reduce the amount of our outstanding borrowings under our Credit Agreement, and to potentially provide a portion of the funds necessary to repay the $90.0 million principal amount repayment of the Series 2008-B Senior Notes, which mature in April 2015. In February 2015, we entered into a commitment letter agreement for the sale of $50.0 million aggregate principal amount of senior secured notes to be issued in April 2015. The proceeds from these notes are expected to provide a portion of the funds necessary to repay the $90.0 million principal amount repayment of the Series 2008-B Senior Notes that mature in April 2015. (See Note G - Long Term Debt and Other Borrowings for further discussion of our debt agreements.) We believe these steps will enhance our liquidity and we further believe, with the current industry environment and activity level, we will have adequate liquidity to fund our operations and debt obligations through December 31, 2015; however, we cannot predict how an extended period of low commodity prices will affect our operations and liquidity levels.

NOTE A – ORGANIZATION AND OPERATIONS

We are a geographically diversified oil and gas services company, focused on completion fluids and associated products and services, water management, frac flowback, production well testing, offshore rig cooling, compression services and equipment, and selected offshore services including well plugging and abandonment, decommissioning, and diving. We also have a limited domestic oil and gas production business. We were incorporated in Delaware in 1981 and are composed of five reporting segments organized into four divisions – Fluids, Production Testing, Compression, and Offshore. Unless the context requires otherwise, when we refer to “we,” “us,” and “our,” we are describing TETRA Technologies, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries on a consolidated basis.

Our Fluids Division manufactures and markets clear brine fluids, additives, and associated products and services to the oil and gas industry for use in well drilling, completion, and workover operations in the United States and in certain countries in Latin America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The division also markets liquid and dry calcium chloride products manufactured at its production facilities or purchased from third-party suppliers to a variety of markets outside the energy industry. The Fluids Division also provides North American onshore oil and gas operators with comprehensive water management services.

Our Production Testing Division provides frac flowback, production well testing, offshore rig cooling, and other associated services in many of the major oil and gas producing regions in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, as well as in certain basins in certain regions in South America, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Australia.

Our Compression Division is a provider of compression services and equipment for natural gas and oil production, gathering, transportation, processing, and storage. The Compression Division also sells standard and custom-designed compressor packages and oilfield fluid pump systems, and provides aftermarket services and compressor package parts and components manufactured by third-party suppliers. The Compression Division provides these compression services and equipment to a broad base of natural gas and oil exploration and production, midstream, transmission, and storage companies operating throughout many of the onshore producing regions of the United States as well as in a number of foreign countries, including Mexico, Canada, and Argentina. As a result of the August 4, 2014, acquisition of Compressor Systems, Inc. ("CSI") (the "CSI Acquisition"), we have significantly expanded the scope of our Compression Division.

Our Offshore Division consists of two operating segments: Offshore Services and Maritech. The Offshore Services segment provides: (1) downhole and subsea services such as well plugging and abandonment and workover services; (2) decommissioning and certain construction services utilizing heavy lift barges and various cutting technologies with regard to offshore oil and gas production platforms and pipelines; and (3) conventional and saturation diving services.

The Maritech segment is a limited oil and gas production operation. During 2011 and the first quarter of 2012, Maritech sold substantially all of its oil and gas producing property interests. Maritech’s operations consist primarily of the ongoing abandonment and decommissioning associated with its remaining offshore wells and production platforms. Maritech intends to acquire a significant portion of these services from the Offshore Division’s Offshore Services segment.

In late 2014, a significant decrease in oil and natural gas commodity prices has lowered the capital expenditure and operating plans of many of our customers, creating additional uncertainty regarding the expected demand for our products and services and the resulting cash flows from operating activities for the foreseeable future. In addition, the availability of new borrowings in the current capital markets is becoming more limited and costly. Accordingly, we have implemented strategic cost reduction steps to adjust our cost structure in the current environment. In addition, we are considering certain asset sales and financing transactions with a view of generating additional cash resources to reduce the amount of our outstanding borrowings under our Credit Agreement, and to potentially provide a portion of the funds necessary to repay the $90.0 million principal amount repayment of the Series 2008-B Senior Notes, which mature in April 2015. In February 2015, we entered into a commitment letter agreement for the sale of $50.0 million aggregate principal amount of senior secured notes to be issued in April 2015. The proceeds from these notes are expected to provide a portion of the funds necessary to repay the $90.0 million principal amount repayment of the Series 2008-B Senior Notes that mature in April 2015. (See Note G - Long Term Debt and Other Borrowings for further discussion of our debt agreements.) We believe these steps will enhance our liquidity and we further believe, with the current industry environment and activity level, we will have adequate liquidity to fund our operations and debt obligations through December 31, 2015; however, we cannot predict how an extended period of low commodity prices will affect our operations and liquidity levels.