Offshore Drilling Services News

UK based Independent Oil & Gas (IOG) has confirmed that the Maersk Resilient rig spudded the Harvey appraisal well on 6 August 2019.The North Sea firm said in a press release that as previously indicated, completion of the well is expected to take approximately two months in the success case.According to the development and production company focused on becoming a substantial UK gas producer, Harvey is centrally located within IOG’s asset portfolio in UK Southern North Sea Blocks 48/23c, 48/24a, and 48/24b, close to the Thames Pipeline export route.The primary objective of the well is to confirm gas volumes which management estimate at 85/129/199 BCF Prospective Resources in the Low/Best/High case…

Thailand-based offshore drilling services company  Mermaid Maritime Public Company said that  its subsidiary Mermaid Subsea Services Thailand (MSST) has entered into a $65 million loan deal with the Export-Import Bank of Thailand (Exim).As per the press release from the provider of subsea and drilling services to the offshore oil and gas industries, the objective of the loan is to extend the financing of the two company’s vessels, the Mermaid Endurer and Mermaid Asiana, for a further period of five years with the same lender.“The loan shall be applied to settle the indebtedness owed to Exim under a previous credit facility agreement for the two vessels and replacing that arrangement with the latest loan instead…

Offshore drilling services provider EnscoRowan announced that an arbitration tribunal has awarded it $180 million in damages in its proceedings against South Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI).Further, the company will be claiming interest on this amount and costs incurred in connection with the matter.In April 2016, EnscoRowan (then Ensco) initiated arbitration proceedings in London against SHI for the losses incurred in connection with a drilling services agreement for ENSCO DS-5 that was voided by customer Petrobras.In January 2018, the arbitration tribunal issued an award on liability fully in EnscoRowan’s favor, and…

New World Supply, where S.D. Standard Drilling (SDSD) has an ownership of 26.2 percent, has completed a sale of two of its six medium sized platform supply vessels (PSVs).According to the Cyprus-based company that offers offshore drilling services to the oil and natural gas exploration industry, the vessels, World Sapphire and World Emerald, have been in lay-up in Spain since October and November 2016.The purchase price, which remains confidential, has been fully paid for both vessels.The transaction is done at a level that reflect significantly higher vessel value compared to SDSD's book value and acquisition price of the shares in New World Supply Ltd.SDSD consider its holding in NWS as a financial investment.

Thailand-based subsea and offshore drilling services company Mermaid Maritime Public Company announced that its Middle East business unit has been awarded a subsea services contract in a GCC country with an initial contract value of USD 16 million.The contract award, with work scheduled to be performed in the Arabian Gulf during the course of August 2018 until March 2019, will involve the use of the DP2 Dive Support Vessel ‘Mermaid Endurer’ equipped with the Air and SAT Dive systems carrying out the overhauling and dry docking of the calm buoys and installation and disconnection of certain SPMs for an international Oil & Gas company…

Tidewater Inc. (NYSE: TDW) appointed John T. Rynd as the company's new President and CEO and a member of the Board of Directors effective March 5. He replaces Larry T. Rigdon who has served as interim President and Chief Executive Officer since October of 2017. Tom Bates, Chairman of the Board of Directors, said "After completing a comprehensive search, the Board is very pleased to welcome John to the team. He brings with him considerable experience in the offshore drilling services sector and the global oil and gas industry as a whole. Rynd previously served as Chief Executive Officer and President, and as a director of Hercules Offshore from 2008 through 2016.

Thailand-based Mermaid Maritime, a subsea and offshore drilling services company, has  been awarded two subsea contracts with a combined estimated value of $4.6 million. The company press release said that the first contract award will involve a short ROV campaign for pipeline touchdown monitoring for an international EPCIC contractor offshore in the Middle East GCC. The second contract award, with work scheduled to commence in the fourth quarter of 2017, will involve use of a diving vessel with work class ROV carrying-out a subsea services project offshore East Kalimantan, Indonesia, for an international upstream oil and gas company.

Wärtsilä, the leading global supplier of flexible and efficient power plant solutions and services, has signed a maintenance agreement with Ensco, a global provider of offshore drilling services to the petroleum industry. The agreement, signed in September 2015, will create both short- and long-term savings by optimising Ensco's assets and improving predictability through extensive condition monitoring services and parts supply management for Ensco's four drillships equipped with six Wärtsilä 32 engines. In the offshore markets, Wärtsilä's customers are continuously seeking increased reliability, maximum uptime and optimal operational efficiency as well as ensuring safe and sustainable environmental performance in harsh environments.

Inchcape Shipping Services (ISS) has been appointed by Paragon Offshore, Houston, as marine and logistic services provider for a new drilling campaign off the Songo Songo Islands, Tanzania – the first new commercial drilling project in Tanzania in a number of years. ISS is providing a range of services for Paragon Offshore including full husbandry, crew logistics, visa assistance and arranging marine and air charters. A leading provider of standard specification offshore drilling services, Paragon Offshore is deploying jack-up rig M826 on the nine month campaign for PanAfrican Energy Tanzania – the country’s first natural gas producer. M826 arrived at the field on board semi-submersible vessel, OHT Falcon, to be floated off and pinned to the drilling location.

Shipping company Clarksons has  published profits of GBP6.2mln, down 36.7 per cent on the first six months of the previous year, citing “severe challenges faced by the dry bulk market” (of unpackaged raw commodities) as the primary cause of the decline. Its interim results showed its pre-tax profit fell to GBP10.8 million from GBP14.1 million in the same period last year,  despite the shipping services company reporting a strong performance in the 1H. It reported a strong performance in tankers, but rates in the dry bulk markets halved compared to the same time last year. The company's broking division saw returns of GBP22 million, up from GBP15.1 million in the 1H14, led by a strong tanker market, and a rise in sale and purchase activity for container ships towards the end of the half.

Ensco plc announced today that Paul Rowsey has been named Non-Executive Chairman of the Board following Dan Rabun’s planned retirement on 18 May 2015 concurrent with the annual general meeting of shareholders. Mr. Rowsey has been a member of Ensco’s Board of Directors since 2000. He most recently served as Lead Director and remains Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee. Mr. Rowsey said, “I am honored to have been selected by the Board to serve in my new role as Non-Executive Chairman. Mr. Rabun served as Chairman following his retirement as President and CEO in 2014. He served on Ensco’s Board of Directors since 2006 and was appointed CEO and Chairman in 2007. Ensco plc brings energy to the world as a global provider of offshore drilling services to the petroleum industry.

Ensco plc announced that Carey Lowe has been promoted to Executive Vice President. Lowe will be responsible for overseeing investor relations, public relations, employee communications and branding, led by Vice President Sean O’Neill, as well as strategy, headed by Vice President Michael Howe, and human resources, directed by Vice President Maria Silva. Mr. Lowe was most recently Senior Vice President – Eastern Hemisphere where he led operations for Europe, Africa, Middle East and the Asia Pacific region. He will continue to be based in London. Mr. Lowe joined Ensco in 2008 as Senior Vice President and has led capital projects, engineering, strategic planning, the deepwater fleet, and safety, health and environmental management. Steve Brady will succeed Mr.

Ensco plc announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of US$0.75 per Class A ordinary share payable on 19 December 2014. The ex-dividend date for this payment is expected to be 4 December 2014, with a record date of 8 December 2014. Ensco uses its website to disclose material and non-material information to investors, customers, employees and others interested in the Company. To receive regular updates on Ensco news or SEC filings, please sign-up for Email Alerts on the Company’s website. Ensco plc brings energy to the world as a global provider of offshore drilling services to the petroleum industry. For more than 25 years, the Company has focused on operating safely and exceeding customer expectations.

Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., DNB Markets, Inc., Goldman, Sachs & Co., HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated and Wells Fargo Securities, LLC are acting as joint book-running managers in connection with the offering. The final prospectus supplement and related prospectus for this offering may be obtained on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s website at www.sec.gov or from underwriter representatives.

Ensco will present at the Barclays Energy-Power Conference in New York City on Wednesday, 3 September 2014 at  11:05 a.m. EDT. The presentation will be available live over the Internet at www.enscoplc.com by selecting Investors/Presentations and Webcasts. Please go to the website at least 15 minutes before the presentation to register, download and install any necessary audio software. A replay of the presentation will be available on Ensco’s website within twenty-four hours of the live presentation and remain available for 30 days. Ensco will present at the Pareto Securities 21st Annual Oil & Offshore Conference in Oslo on Wednesday, 10 September 2014 at 11:05 a.m. CEST (5:05 a.m. EDT). A presentation will be available at the link noted above. There will be no webcast.

Ensco plc (NYSE: ESV) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of US$0.75 per Class A ordinary share payable on 20 June 2014. The ex-dividend date for this payment is expected to be 5 June 2014, with a record date of 9 June 2014. Ensco’s dividend yield is among the top five percent of S&P 500® companies. Ensco uses its website to disclose material and non-material information to investors, customers, employees and others interested in the Company. To receive regular updates on Ensco news or SEC filings, please sign-up for Email Alerts on the Company’s website. Ensco plc (NYSE: ESV) brings energy to the world as a global provider of offshore drilling services to the petroleum industry.

Offshore drilling services provider Ensco on the crest of the wave according to their second quarter 2013 financial results. Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Rabun stated, “We continue to see strong, broad-based customer demand given the steady pace of new discoveries that must be appraised and developed. Mr. Revenues grew 17% to a record $1.248 billion in second quarter 2013 from $1.071 billion a year ago. Operating income grew 12% to $452 million and earnings increased $20 million to a record $361 million.

Transocean Ltd. announced that certain Funds affiliated with Carl Icahn submitted to the company for vote at its 2013 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM) a dividend proposal of $4.00 per share. Additionally, the Funds provided a notice of nomination of three director candidates for election to Transocean's Board of Directors at its 2013 AGM and a proposal to repeal the company's staggered board. The Transocean Board of Directors will evaluate the proposals in due course. In response to Mr.

Keppel FELS Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine, has secured three contracts worth a combined US$300 million from repeat customers. The contracts are for the construction of a KFELS B Class jackup rig from Star Drilling Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based company promoted by the companies of D.P. Jindal Group; the upgrading of the semisubmersible ENSCO 5006 for Ensco PLC (Ensco); and the upgrading of the semisubmersible Ocean Patriot for Diamond Offshore. Wong Kok Seng, Managing Director (Offshore) of Keppel O&M and Managing Director of Keppel FELS said, "We are glad to be able to continue from 2012 into 2013 by adding more contracts to our orderbook. Even as we add to our new orders, we continue to deliver our projects safely, on time and on budget.

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.

Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc. operates contract drilling of offshore oil and gas wells. The company conducts deepwater drilling with a fleet of 45 offshore rigs. The fleet consists of 30 semisubmersible rigs, 14 jack-up rigs and one drillship. The company’s principal market for its offshore drilling services include the Gulf of Mexico, Europe, Africa, the Southeast Asia, Australia and South America. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Diamond Offshore Team Solutions, the company also offers a portfolio of drilling services to complement the company’s offshore contract drilling business. These services include overall project management, extended well tests and drilling and completion operations.

DryShips Inc., has purchased 33,254,576 shares of Ocean Rig ASA an Oslo Stock Exchange listed offshore drilling services company, at a price of NOK 45 per share. Following these transactions DryShips Inc. owns 49.9% of the shares and votes in Ocean Rig ASA. As advised on December 17, 2007 Mr. George Economou, Chairman and CEO of DryShips Inc., has separately acquired approximately 4.4% of the share capital of Ocean Rig ASA. The total ownership percentage has been calculated based on an issued share capital in Ocean Rig ASA of 170,374,980 shares, as contained in Ocean Rig’s last Certificate of Registration. As a consequence of yesterday’s acquisition DryShips Inc.

Transocean Inc. and GlobalSantaFe Corporation said that their boards of directors have unanimously approved a definitive agreement for a merger of equals. Based upon closing prices for each company's ordinary shares as of July 20, 2007, the estimated enterprise value of the combined company would be approximately $53 billion. The combined company, to be known as Transocean Inc., will retain principal offices in Houston and trade on the New York Stock Exchange with the symbol RIG. Under the terms of the agreement, Transocean shareholders will receive $33.03 in cash and 0.6996 shares of the combined company for each share of Transocean they own. GlobalSantaFe shareholders will receive $22.46 in cash and 0.4757 shares of the combined company for each share of GlobalSantaFe they own.