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Swiber News

31 Jul 2019

Swiber Forms JV with Hilong Marine

Singapore offshore company Swiber Holdings' wholly-owned subsidiary, Swiber Offshore Construction (SOC) has entered into a shareholder's agreement with Hilong Marine Engineering (HME) to establish a joint venture company in Singapore.The shareholders (51% Hilong and 49% Swiber) have named the new company – Ocentra Offshore. New joint venture to target offshore construction and installation sector.According to the company, the principal business of the new JV firm will be pipe-laying and integration of pipeline systems, offshore heavy lifting and installation, subsea tie-in and underwater maintenance, as well as barge and vessel management and chartering.The JV Company will be held by Hilong Marine Engineering and SOC as to 51% and 49%…

04 Oct 2018

Seaspan to Invest $200 Mln into Offshore Vessel Owner Swiber

Singapore-based offshore contractor Swiber has signed a $200 million deal with box ship player Seaspan Corporation, just days after it announced the expiry of a term sheet for a share swop arrangement with Australian power generation firm, Interlink Power & Energy Holdings.In a stock exchange announcement, the offshore construction and services group said that it has signed with Seaspan a binding term sheet on October 3, 2018, which is subject to definitive agreements being entered into on mutually agreed terms. Under the terms, Seaspan proposes to invest up to $200 million in two stages.The first stage is an initial $20 million in cash for new ordinary shares in Swiber which will give it control of 80 percent of Swiber’s enlarged share capital…

12 Sep 2018

Offshore Optimism is Cautiously on the Rise

file Image (CREDIT: Harvey Gulf)

Following the path of oil prices, consolidation also follows myriad financial crises. What happens next isn’t altogether clear, but the long, deep trough for offshore energy may finally be in our choppy wake.In mid 2017, financial turnaround and financial repairs specialist Alix Partners made a bold statement regarding the beleaguered Offshore Service Vessel (OSV) marketplace. In a July 2017 report, following an analysis of 44 participants in the business, the restructuring team wrote: “The industry faces grave financial pressure…

10 Jul 2017

OSV Companies Running Out of Options -Study

© corlaffra / Adobe Stock

As oil continues to sell below $50 per barrel, 2017 could be one of the toughest years in decades for Offshore Supply Vessel (OSV) companies, according to a study of 44 companies in the industry by AlixPartners. The firm’s analysis highlights these companies’ rising debt burdens, making it increasingly unlikely that most of them can maintain solvency. The industry faces grave financial pressure, which is clear from recent bankruptcy filings and distressed mergers. Exploration and production (E&P) companies have drastically reduced their rig counts, causing demand for OSV services to plunge.

12 Apr 2017

Rickmers Maritime is Latest Singapore Casualty

Company struggled with debt in wake of shipping downturn. Debt includes over $270 mln in secured loans. Rickmers Maritime, a Singapore-listed trust that operates container ships, said it would be wound up as it has been unable to reach an agreement with its lenders to restructure debt or raise new equity. Struggling in the wake of a global shipping downturn, Rickmers joins other Singapore-listed companies from the offshore and marine sectors that have been grappling with debt in the last year. Singapore banks, which were caught off-guard by the collapse of oilfield services company Swiber Holdings last year, have taken a hit as the firms restructure their loans.

19 Mar 2017

Ezra Holdings Files for Bankruptcy in US

Oilfield services firm Ezra Holdings of Singapore filed for U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy at the weekend, blaming a prolonged slump in the energy industry, Reuters reported. Ezra  has been facing hostile actions from creditors at home and abroad as it struggles to recover from a slump in oil prices over the past three years. The company filed voluntary petitions for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code, according to a stock exchange filing on Sunday. Ezra will hold an informal meeting as soon as "reasonably practicable" to update and provide further information on the Chapter 11 filing to holders of its debt, it said in a separate statement. Ezra is one of several Singapore offshore and marine services firms that have been hit by a downturn in oil prices since in 2014.

06 Mar 2017

Offshore Vessel Contractors Re-shaping for a Rebound

File photo: BOA

The announcement on the February 28 of EMAS Chiyoda’s bankruptcy is the latest in a long line of vessel contractors to fall victim to the downturn since January 2015. Multiple companies such as Cal Dive, Ceona, Cecon, Hercules Offshore, Harkand and Swiber have entered into administration, taking a significant number of vessels out of the active fleet. In other cases, internal restructuring measures (e.g. Siem Offshore, Boa Offshore, Deepocean etc.) were/have been in order. While current indicators of subsea activity (e.g.

01 Jan 2017

Swiber-Linked Vessels Seized in Singapore

Three of of Swiber Holdings vessels had been seized in an arrest moved by a syndicate of banks, reports Business Times. All three vessels were arrested at ASL Shipyard, the litigant in the arrest is United Overseas Bank (UOB), acting as security agent for the syndicate of banks that had extended financing to the vessel owner in relation to a sale and leaseback deal. The recent filing for liquidation by Swiber Holdings, an oil and gas business listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange, sent jitters through the markets. Total claims received by struggling offshore engineering group Swiber Holdings stood at about US$288.8 million as at Dec 29, 2016, the group said in an update filed to the Singapore Exchange.

14 Dec 2016

Keels Laid for Young Brothers Tugs at Conrad Shipyard

Conrad Shipyard held the Keel Laying Ceremony for the four Damen Stan 3711 Kāpena Class tugs now under construction for Young Brothers, Limited of Hawaii. On hand for the ceremony was Glenn Hong, President of Young Brothers, Ltd; Jonathan Parrott, President of Foss Marine, Young Brothers’ sister company; and, Tim Engle and Mark Tabbutt with Saltchuk, the parent company of both. Also attending and delivering remarks was Kommer Damen, Chairman and CEO of Damen Shipyard, and Jim Watson, President of ABS Americas. A number of local officials were also present, including Morgan City Mayor Frank P. Grizzaffi III, Port Director Mac Wade and Councilman Lou Tamporello. Dan Conrad, Senior Vice President Conrad Shipyard served as moderator.

25 Oct 2016

Sembcorp Marine Swings to Loss in Q3

Photo: Sembcorp Marine

Singapore's Sembcorp Marine Ltd swung to a loss in the third quarter and the rig builder's revenue was hurt by customers deferring rig deliveries amid a protracted downturn in the oil and natural gas market. The company posted a net loss of S$21.8 million ($15.7 million) for the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with a net profit of S$32.1 million a year ago. It said the bottomline was hurt by higher financing costs, share of losses from associates and foreign exchange impact. The company, majority-owned by industrial conglomerate Sembcorp Industries Ltd, said revenue dropped 21 percent.

07 Sep 2016

Marco Polo Appoints Adviser for Business Review

Photo: Marco Polo Marine Ltd.

Singapore's Marco Polo Marine Ltd, whose business includes building and chartering ships, said it has appointed KPMG Services as an adviser to conduct an independent business review of the company. The company, which has S$50 million ($37.19 million) worth of notes maturing on Oct. 18, said it would hold an informal meeting with holders of the notes on Sept. 13 to present KPMG's review and discuss various options in connection with the notes. Marco Polo is one of several companies in Singapore's offshore and marine sector whose financial results have been hit by the slump in oil prices.

31 Aug 2016

Vallianz Rejects Payment Request from Swiber Managers

(Photo: Vallianz Holdings)

Vallianz Holdings, which provides support vessels for the oil industry, said on Wednesday it had refused a request from the judicial managers of shareholder Swiber Holdings to pay around $63.5 million in outstanding dues. Vallianz, in a statement, said Swiber, which owns around 25 percent of Vallianz, owed it a similar amount and that should be taken into account. Oilfield services group Swiber applied last month to place itself under judicial management, rather than liquidation, as it faced hundreds of millions of dollars in debt and a decline in orders.

08 Aug 2016

Court Orders Swiber to Stop Payment of Bank Guarantees

File photo: Swiber

Swiber Offshore Construction, part of troubled Singapore oilfield services firm Swiber Holdings, has received an interim court order to halt payment of bank guarantees for projects it was involved in, a stock exchange filing showed. Parent company Swiber Holdings last month applied to place itself under judicial management, after initially filing for liquidation, becoming the largest local company to fall victim to the slump in oil prices. Judicial management allows for a company to be nursed back to health under the supervision of the Singapore Court.

29 Jul 2016

Swiber Applies for Judicial Management Instead of Liquidation

Photo: Swiber

Singapore oilfield services company Swiber Holdings Ltd said on Friday it has applied to place itself under judicial management instead of liquidation. Swiber shocked markets earlier this week by filing for liquidation, as it faced hundreds of million of dollars in debt and a decline in orders, becoming the largest local company to fall victim to the slump in oil prices. Judicial management allows a financially-distressed company the room to return to financial health under the…

31 Aug 2015

Harkand: Expanding the Fleet, Growing a Global Business

The DP2 multi-purpose service and ROV vessel, the Siem Spearfish, operates globally.

International inspection, repair and maintenance (IRM) company Harkand aims to be a $1 billion company. MR’s Tom Mulligan recently met with John Reed, the company’s CEO, to discuss his vision for the future and how Harkand aims to achieve its goal of being the leading subsea IRM and light construction contractor globally. Established in 2012 and headquartered in London with operations bases in Aberdeen, Houston, Mexico, and Ghana, global subsea IRM group Harkand has been expanding its business operations rapidly throughout North America…

26 Mar 2015

Swiber Gains $405.6 mi Contracts

Business momentum is fast picking up at Swiber Holdings Limited despite the downturn in the oil and gas industry as the Group clinches a total of US$405.6 million for a series of contracts, including its latest US$333 million contract for Engineering, Procurement, Installation and Construction (EPIC) services in India. The contract in India is the second awarded to Swiber by the same national oil company in just over a month. The project, to commence immediately, involves transportation and installation of submarine pipelines and engineering works and modification of existing facilities. Phase 1 is expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2016 and Phase II, the second quarter of 2017.

19 Aug 2014

Swiber to Fly Mexican Flag on 4 More OSVs

Singapore-based Swiber informs it will hoist the Mexican flag on another four vessels in its fleet, comprising one derrick pipelay barge and three anchor handling tug / supply vessels (AHTs). Five vessels were deployed in Mexico three years ago when Swiber landed its first contract win in Latin America, with the construction of a 77 kilometer-long submarine pipeline project in Mexico for Pemex. Swiber has since actively performed a number of major offshore construction projects in the region, and gained a reputation for its commitment to excellence, competitiveness and safety. Today, Swiber has established strong presence in Mexico, which serves as the Group’s platform to further expand into the Latin America region.

10 Jul 2014

Swiber Up 8 Places in Singapore's Top Brand Ranking

Offshore service vessel operators Swiber says its brand has shot up 8 places to rank 68th in Singapore’s Top 100 Brands 2014 as the company gained international attention with milestones for the first float-over operation in India, and successful execution of the Group’s first project in the Gulf of Mexico. Leveraging its strengths in a young and modern fleet of 51 operating vessels, and the capabilities to provide the full spectrum of EPIC services, Swiber says it has been aggressively expanding its reach with the successful penetration in the Latin America market. Swiber is well on its way to establishing a strategic global network of offices and operations in all key markets.

02 Jun 2014

Swiber Wins Big Latin America EPIC Contract

Construction & support services provider to the offshore oil and gas industry, Singapore's Swiber Holidngs, says it has won an Engineering, Procurement, Installation and Construction (“EPIC”) contract in Latin America for subsea development work including pipeline tie-in work, with an aggregate value of US$80-million. The project will commence immediately and is expected to complete in 2015. Commented Mr. Francis Wong, Group Chief Executive Officer and President of Swiber, “We are pleased with this project win as it is testament to Swiber’s ability to successfully develop and grow in regions where we are expanding into as part of our strategic long term goals.

28 Feb 2014

Singapore Offshore Firm Rides Crest of 2013 Financial Wave

Else-Marie OSV: Photo CCL credit Marc Ryckaert

Singapore's Swiber Holdings, a construction and support services provider to the offshore oil and gas industry, reported that it has achieved record revenue and net profit for the second consecutive year-running for the full year ended December 31, 2013. Revenue rose 11.2% to hit US$1.1 billion from US$952.2 million for the full year ended December 31, 2012. The Group’s topline was driven by a 75.3% surge in sales in the South East Asia segment to US$780.8 million from US$445.5 million over the same period.

03 Feb 2014

Swiber Holdings Hit the Ground Running in 2014

Francis Wong: Photo courtesy of Swiber Holdings

Construction & support services provider to the offshore oil and gas industry, Singapore's Swiber Holdings Limited (Swiber), announce they have already been awarded 5 sizeable contracts in 2014. Three of these contract, which amounted to approximately US$145-million, were awarded for works that will be executed in Latin America and Southeast Asia. The remaining two contracts, which aggregated to approximately US$90-million, were awarded to Swiber’s associate company and joint venture company, and are for services that will be executed in Southeast Asia.

14 Aug 2013

Swiber Reports Profitable First Half 2013

Swiber logo

Singapore's Swiber Holdings construction & support services providers to the offshore oil and gas industry, reported that net profit in the half year ended June 30, 2013 rose 11.8% to US$37.4 million from US$33.5 million in the half year ended June 30, 2012. Commented Mr. Francis Wong, Group Chief Executive Officer and President of Swiber, “The first half of this year has seen Swiber making strides in several ways. Notably, Swiber won several quality projects amounting to US$570 million to-date.

08 May 2013

New Subsea Piledriver Uses Seawater

IHC Hydrohammer, part of IHC Merwede has developed and tested a new technology which uses seawater instead of hydraulic oil. This sustainable product development minimises potential oil spill hazards in the marine environment and presents new opportunities for deep-water offshore pile driving that will be beneficial to the future growth of offshore construction. The S-90W IHC Waterhammer has been utilised in conjunction with Swiber Offshore Construction. The installation contractor used the advanced pile-driving hammer to install four foundation piles on the subsea PLEM (pipeline end manifold) located approximately 210km off the west coast of Mumbai, India.