Seabulk International Posts Third Quarter Results

Seabulk International, Inc. reported net income of $2.9 million or $0.27 per diluted share for the quarter ended September 30, 2001. Revenues of $89.7 million in the current quarter were up 10% from $81.6 million a year ago. Operating income of $18.6 million was double the $9.3 million earned in the third quarter of 2000, led by continued strength in the Company's worldwide offshore energy services business and its domestic tanker business.

Revenues from Seabulk Offshore, which operates a fleet of 142 offshore energy support vessels, rose 31 percent year-over-year to $51.1 million from $39.1 million and accounted for 57 percent of total revenues. Operating income from Seabulk Offshore totaled $13.0 million, a nearly three-fold increase from $4.6 million a year ago. Utilization was 83% against 90% in the second quarter and 76% in the year-earlier quarter. Seabulk’s fleet of 32 Gulf of Mexico-based crewboats averaged $3,061 in the third quarter versus $2,929 in the second quarter and $2,117 a year ago, while utilization was 83 percent compared with 87 percent in the second quarter and 86 percent in 2000.

In West Africa, where Seabulk Offshore has the industry's second largest fleet, average supply boat day rates rose to $7,644 from $6,988 in the second quarter and $5,887 in 2000, while utilization was 82 percent against 86 percent in the second quarter and 85 percent a year ago. In the Middle East and Southeast Asia, day rates firmed while utilization remained steady.

Revenue from Seabulk Tankers, the domestic marine transportation business (which includes its Sun State Marine Services subsidiary), totaled $30.6 million, or 34 percent of total revenues, versus $34.6 million in the third quarter of 2000, when they operated an additional tanker which has since been scrapped. The decline in revenues also reflects the conversion of certain voyage charters to more profitable time charters, the effect of which is to reduce reported revenues by shifting the cost of fuel and port charges to the charterer. As a result of both higher freight rates and the conversion of voyage charters to time charters, operating income from Seabulk Tankers increased 23 percent year over year to $7.6 million from $6.2 million. Seabulk's fleet of 10 U.S.-flag, Jones Act tankers includes five state-of-the-art, double-hull product carriers, the newest and most modern vessels of their type in the market.