Noble Drilling Reports Results
Noble Drilling Corporation's reported net income increased 143 percent for the fourth quarter of 2000 to $51.9 million, or $0.38 per diluted share, on operating revenues of $241.2 million, compared to net income, excluding the effects of non-recurring items, of $21.4 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, on operating revenues of $173.5 million for the fourth quarter of 1999. The quarterly results for 1999 included a restructuring charge of $7.5 million ($4.9 net of tax) related to early retirement packages offered to a number of employees and the relocation of the Company's Gulf Coast Marine division office in Lafayette, Louisiana to the centralized office in Sugar Land.
Tidewater Elects Day, Announces Sr. Hire
New Orleans-based Tidewater Inc. elected James C. Day to its Board of Directors and reported it has hired Bruce Lundstrom as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary. Day joins Tidewater’s Board with more than 30 years of experience in the oil and gas industry. He is the retired chairman and former CEO of Noble Corp., one of the world’s largest offshore drilling companies. Day serves on the Board of Directors of ONEOK Inc., and as a trustee of the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation. He also served on the Board of the Offshore Energy Center and the American Petroleum Institute. Lundstrom most recently served as senior vice president and general counsel for Prisma Energy International Inc.…
Tidewater Elects Day To Board of Directors
Tidewater announced the election of James C. Day to its Board of Directors for a term expiring in July 2008. Day comes to Tidewater with a distinguished and successful career in the oil and gas industry with thirty years of experience. Mr. Day is the retired Chairman of the Board and former CEO of Noble Corporation, founded in Oklahoma in 1921 and is currently one of the world's largest offshore drilling companies. During his 23 year tenure with Noble Corporation, the company evolved from primarily a domestic land drilling contractor to an international offshore drilling leader operating in fourteen countries. Noble's market capitalization grew tremendously during this timeframe and the company became a member of the Fortune 500. Mr.
Noble Drilling Acquires Jackup Rig
Noble Drilling Corporation has formed a joint venture with Lime Rock Partners, and the joint venture has acquired Ocean Scotian, a North Sea jackup, for $32.7 million. Concurrent with the acquisition, the rig was renamed Noble Julie Robertson. Noble Drilling owns 50 percent of the joint venture, and will manage the upgrade, marketing and operation of the rig. Noble Drilling expects to upgrade the drilling systems and the crew accommodations in order to conform to the new regulations applicable in the North Sea. The company anticipates the unit will be available for service in mid-2000. James C.
No Relief Yet
Oilfield service companies were not nearly as lucky as their oil producing counterparts. While net income in the oil producing industry was up over the 1998 third-quarter, oilfield service companies were still feeling the pain of the low oil prices from earlier in the year. While the stock market - the global business measuring stick - has generally been positive on the offshore oilfield sector throughout much of the year, there has been a relapse of sorts in October, as uncertainty surrounding OPEC output quotas has largely dampened the year's progress. In fact, a major tracker of offshore industry stocks, Warburg Dillon Read, in mid-October cut its ratings of four oilfield equipment and services companies.
