Seadrill Ltd News

Offshore drilling rig contractors Transocean Ltd and Dolphin Drilling have made a new offer to buy the assets of stricken rival Seadrill Ltd, Dolphin's chief executive said on Friday.Oslo-listed Seadrill, founded by Norwegian-born tycoon John Fredriksen, is seeking to emerge from U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings under an alternative financial plan filed in court last month."I can confirm that Dolphin and Transocean submitted an updated bid yesterday," Dolphin Chief Executive Bjoernar Iversen told Reuters.Seadrill's Oslo-listed shares traded 5.5% up by 1425 GMT…

Noble Corp and a consortium that includes Transocean Ltd and Dolphin Drilling are competing to acquire the assets of Seadrill Ltd, the bankrupt offshore oil driller controlled by Norwegian-born tycoon John Fredriksen, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.Seadrill is trying to emerge from its second U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy in four years: like many in the industry, it expanded its drilling rigs too aggressively in the mid-2010s to withstand a subsequent plunge in energy prices and rig hire rates.

Golar LNG said on Monday Hygo Energy Transition Ltd, a joint venture between Golar and U.S. private equity firm Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners, has appointed Paul Hanrahan as chief executive officer after Eduardo Antonello stepped down, following a corruption investigation in Brazil.Antonello has been accused by Brazilian federal prosecutors of bribery in a massive Car Wash corruption probe that in six years has led to the jailing of two former Brazilian presidents and hundreds of executives and politicians, with Brazilian and Dutch police executing dozens of search warrants.Operation Car Wash: Seadrill Served with Search and Seizure…

Golar LNG said on Tuesday Hygo Energy Transition Ltd Chief Executive Officer Eduardo Antonello has taken leave of absence with immediate effect, following a corruption investigation involving him in Brazil.Golar said Antonello's leave was in no way linked to any action or misconduct during his tenure at Hygo Energy, a liquefied natural gas transport and infrastructure operator formed with U.S. private equity firm Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners.Antonello's functions will be taken over temporarily by Hygo's board, Golar said.Last Thursday, Brazilian federal prosecutors accused Antonello of bribery in court filings outlining a new phase of the massive Car Wash graft probe…

A U.S. judge said on Tuesday he would approve Seadrill Ltd's plan to exit its Chapter 11 bankruptcy, in which the global offshore oil and gas drilling company would shed billions of dollars of debt and raise $1 billion in new investment. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David Jones in Houston overruled two minor objections to the reorganization plan during a 90-minute hearing. The plan extends maturities on more than $5 billion of bank loans and converts about $2.3 billion in bond debt into equity in a reorganized Seadrill.

Louisiana-based Harvey Gulf International Marine LLC, which has more than 50 vessels in its fleet and supplies offshore oil rigs among other services, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Houston. Harvey Gulf did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The company said in court papers it had more than $1 billion in debt and has an agreement with lenders to reduce what the company owes. In return lenders would receive the equity in the company when it exits bankruptcy. Other creditors such as suppliers will be paid in full. A sharp drop in oil prices in 2014 cut demand for rigs, and over the past year many offshore drilling and service companies such as Seadrill Ltd and Ocean Rig UDW Inc have filed for bankruptcy.

Sembcorp Marine announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Jurong Shipyard Pte Ltd (JSPL) has signed an agreement for the sale of the semi-submersible rig West Rigel (Rig) to a buyer at a price of US$500 million. Under the terms of the agreement, the Sale is subject to conditions precedent being met by both parties before the delivery of the Rig and the payment of the price. Once the conditions precedent are fulfilled, the buyer will take delivery of the Rig but the Rig will remain in the Company’s yard for certain works to be undertaken for reactivation. West Rigel was originally contracted by North Atlantic Rigel Ltd (NARL), a subsidiary of North Atlantic Drilling Ltd (NADL) and Seadrill Ltd. Both Seadrill Ltd and NADL have applied for restructuring under Chapter 11 in the United States.

Offshore oil drilling and service companies, hurt by the energy industry's shift to lower-cost shale and away from deepwater projects, are dominating the year's energy bankruptcies in North America, according to law firm Haynes and Boone. There were fewer oilfield service companies seeking protection this year than last but those that did have had larger debts. Through October, 44 oilfield services companies filed for bankruptcy in the United States and Canada owing creditors $24.8 billion, compared with 72 companies and $13.48 billion for all of 2016.

SapuraKencana Petroleum Berhad's (“SapuraKencana”) presence in Brazil continues to grow after entering the market with its first pipelaying support vessel (“PLSV”), Sapura Diamante, on June 28, 2014. On 14 February 2016, its latest PLSV, Sapura Jade commenced work with Petróleo Brasileiro S.A (“Petrobras”) on schedule in Brazil. SapuraKencana’s offshore operations are being executed in Brazil for Petrobras by its Brazilian joint venture company Sapura Navegacao Maritima (“SNM”), a 50:50 venture with offshore drilling company Seadrill Ltd. In November 2011 and in June 2013, SapuraKencana’s joint venture company in Brazil, SNM, was awarded…

Transocean Ltd shares are expected to move about 8 percent in either direction following its earnings results on Wednesday, options data showed, but positioning among traders suggests some worry. This would be the biggest post-earnings move for the shares in at least eight quarters. The outlook among traders was pessimistic, however, as seven of the ten most active Transocean options on Tuesday were puts, which are usually either a bet on or a hedge against the shares falling. "People are very cautious going into the earnings," said J.J.

Tug Fairmount Summit has towed jack-up rig West Ariel safely from Vung Tau, Vietnam, to Singapore. The towage over a distance of 1,305 miles was performed in seven days with an average speed of 4 knots. The West Ariel, a KFels B class independent leg cantilever jack-up rig, was built in 2008 by Keppels Fels, Singapore and is owned by UK based Seadrill Ltd. The 73 meters long, 10,352 GT rig can drill up to 9,144 meters in depth. For this job the Fairmount Summit was mobilized from Singapore. When the convoy arrived in Singapore the rig was handed over to local harbor tugs.

Tug Fairmount Sherpa towed rig Sevan Louisiana safely from Singapore to Curaçao. During the 11,500 miles voyage via Cape of Good Hope, stops were made in Port Louis (Mauritius), Walvis Bay (Namibia) and Port of Spain (Trinidad) to take bunkers and for crew changes. Sevan Louisiana is a so called Ultra Deep Water rig (UDW), built in 2013 at the Cosco shipyard in Nantong, China, for UK-based Seadrill Ltd. The self-propelled rig, equipped with eight thrusters, can accommodate up to 150 crew members.

SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd's second largest shareholder plans to sell up to $305 million worth of shares in the Malaysian oil and gas services firm, according to a term sheet of the deal seen by Reuters. Norway's Seadrill Ltd., the world's top offshore oil driller, is offering up to 230 million shares of SapuraKencana at 4.3 ringgit each, putting the total value of the deal at up to 989 million ringgit ($305 million). The price is equivalent to a 3.4 percent discount to Wednesday's closing price of 4.45 ringgit. The deal consists of a base offer of 180 million shares, with an option to grow by 50 million shares, according to the terms. Maybank was hired as sole placing agent for the selldown. ($1 = 3.2410 Malaysian Ringgits)   Reporting by Elzio Barreto

Reuters - Transocean Ltd, owner of the world's largest offshore drilling fleet, said it could take up to 18-24 months for demand to recover as customers delay drilling programs. Demand for offshore rigs is tapering as major oil companies trim exploration and production budgets in the face of investor demands for higher returns. Transocean, whose deepwater fleet is relatively older than that of its competitors, said about 19 of its deepwater and ultra deepwater rigs will be up for contracts in 2014. In comparison, rival Ensco Plc will have eight rigs available for contract, while Seadrill Ltd will have five in 2014. A lease normally runs for five years or more.

Seadrill Limited has ordered tow high-specification jack up drilling rigs from Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore Co., Ltd. (DSIC Offshore). The newbuild rigs are scheduled for delivery during the second and third quarters of 2016, and the total project price per rig is approximately US$230 million (including project management, capitalized interest, drilling and handling tools, spares and operation preparations), with tail-heavy payment terms. The two new units will be based on the F&G JU2000E design, with water depth capacity of 400ft and drilling depth of 30,000ft. Seadrill now has in total ten jack-ups under construction at DSIC Offshore of which two are scheduled for delivery in 2013, five in 2015 and three in 2016.

Bermuda-based Seadrill Ltd., an offshore driller controlled by billionaire John Fredriksen, is seeking to buy 50.1 percent of Sevan Drilling ASA to veto financing plans for the firm that it says would destroy shareholder value. Seadrill, headquartered in Hamilton, hired DNB Markets to look to purchase as many as 116.9 million shares in Norwegian-based Sevan at 3.95 kroner a share, it said in a statement. The company today [June 26] increased its stake in Sevan, an operator of deep-water drilling rigs, to 30.4 percent, report Bernews, citing statements by Seadrill. The Norwegian operator, Sevan Drilling, which owns two ultra-deepwater drilling units and has two more being built, said June 19 it agreed terms on a $1.45 billion, five-year bank facility.

GE’s Power Conversion business signed a multimillion dollar contract with shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) of Ulsan, South Korea. GE will supply electric power, propulsion systems and drilling drives for a new semisubmersible drilling platform HHI is building for Seadrill Ltd., which is expected to work in either the North Sea or offshore Canada. The sixth generation semisubmersible, based on a Moss Maritime CS60 design, will be built in accordance with Norwegian regulatory body Det Norske Veritas’ (DNV) dynamic positioning DP3 class—the highest notation in terms of design to withstand specified instances of equipment failure.

ABB recently won an order worth $80 million from Samsung Heavy Industries to supply energy efficient drives, motors and electrical power systems for five drilling vessels and two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers to be built at Samsung’s shipyard in Korea. The vessels will be used to extract, process and transport oil and gas. The order was booked in the second quarter of 2012. Samsung Heavy Industries, a branch of the giant South-Korean holding, focuses its shipyard business on a wide range of large vessel types, including LNG carriers, drill ships and semi-submersible drilling rigs.

Keppel FELS Limited's repeat customer, Asia Offshore Drilling Limited ("AOD") has exercised its first of two options to build a KFELS B Class jackup rig worth US$184 million. The effectiveness of this first option is subject to AOD or its wholly owned subsidiary entering into a construction contract with Keppel FELS and fulfilling certain conditions precedent. This rig will be AOD's third with Keppel FELS and is scheduled for delivery in 3Q2013. AOD, established by Singapore listed Mermaid Maritime Public Company Limited ("Mermaid"), had placed orders for two KFELS B Class jackup rigs in December 2010. Last week, AOD announced the completion of a private placement which will result in Mermaid and Seadrill Ltd. each having a 33.75% equal shareholding ownership in AOD. M.L.

Keppel FELS Limited's repeat customer, Asia Offshore Drilling Limited ("AOD"), has exercised its first of two options to build a KFELS B Class jackup rig worth $184 million. The effectiveness of this first option is subject to AOD or its wholly-owned subsidiary entering into a construction contract with Keppel FELS and fulfilling certain conditions precedent. This rig will be AOD's third with Keppel FELS and is scheduled for delivery in 3Q 2013. AOD, established by Singapore listed Mermaid Maritime Public Company Limited ("Mermaid"), had placed orders for two KFELS B Class jackup rigs in December 2010. Last week, AOD announced the completion of a private placement which will result in Mermaid and Seadrill Ltd. each having a 33.75% equal shareholding ownership in AOD.

Companies in the Oil & Gas Drilling & Exploration sector have posted surging top lines in recent quarters as global oil consumption continues to grow. With profits on the upswing, several explorers have begun boosting dividend payments. The Bedford Report examines the outlook for companies in the Oil & Gas Sector and provides equity research on SeaDrill Ltd.SDRL +1.38% and Pengrowth Energy Corporation PGH +1.16% CA:PGF +0.88% . The US drilling sector will need to work through new safety and environmental regulations that arose out of last year's Gulf of Mexico oil spill. While acquiring permits was initially difficult, the US government has recently released a new, more-efficient, application process that should make the sector's battle a little easier.

ABB's order, worth $80 million from Samsung Heavy Industries, is to supply energy efficient drives, motors and electrical power systems for five drilling vessels and two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers to be built at Samsung’s shipyard in Korea. The vessels will be used to extract, process and transport oil and gas. Samsung is building five drill ships (three for Seadrill Ltd. in Norway, one for Pacific Drilling S.A in Brazil and one for Ensco Plc in the UK) and two LNG carrier vessels for Golar LNG Ltd in the UK. The vessels will be used for oil and gas exploration and the transportation of liquefied natural gas. ABB will deliver the complete electrical system for the seven vessels…

According to Reuters, tight demand, attractive valuations and a Norwegian company that has said it is ready to get bigger have sparked widespread expectation for consolidation in the U.S. offshore drilling sector in 2007. Possible scenarios include a leveraged buyout by a private equity firm, large-scale recapitalizations or the acquisition of a U.S. driller by an overseas company, U.S. analysts said. And a lot of industry attention is focused on Norwegian driller SeaDrill Ltd., which said in no uncertain terms in November that it was looking to grow. SeaDrill is controlled by Norwegian shipping magnate John Fredriksen, who analysts credit with the know-how and experience to make an acquisition work, citing his leadership in building tanker company Frontline Ltd.