Sembcorp Marine gets seventh Brazil drillship order

NOVEMBER 29, 2012 — “We are proud to be recognized as a strategic partner in Brazil’s pre-salt drillships program for its deepwater oil fields,” Sembcorp Marine President and CEO Mr. Wong Weng Sun said today as the company reported the signing of a drillship contract worth US$806.4 million from Sete Brasil Participacǒes S.A. (Sete Brasil), for the design and construction of a drillship based on Jurong Shipyard’s proprietary Jurong Espadon drillship design.

The unit is the seventh of a series of drillships that Sembcorp Marine’s subsidiaries have secured since February 2012. Including the six drillships that were announced on 6 February and 8 August this year, all seven drillships will be built based on the Jurong Espadon design, which represents the next generation of high specification drillships with advanced capabilities for operational efficiency and ultra-deepwater operations worldwide.

Each of the drillships will be equipped with state-of-the art drilling facilities, a larger deck area, efficient deck arrangement and a large moon pool for enhanced drilling operations as well as DP-3 (Dynamic Positioning Class 3) capabilities and superior motion. The drillship will be capable of operating at 10,000 ft water depth and drilling to depths of 40,000 ft, with accommodation facilities for a crew of 180 personnel.

The seventh drillship unit is scheduled for delivery no later than the third quarter of 2016. These seven ultra-deepwater drillships, with deliveries ranging from 2Q 2015 to 4Q 2019 will be among the first in a series of drillships to be built in Brazil to cater to the oil and gas discoveries in the offshore giant pre-salt fields of the Santos Basin. On delivery, all seven drillships will be chartered to Petrobras for 15 years.

Mr João Carlos Ferraz, Chief Executive Officer of Sete Brasil said “We are pleased to sign this additional drillship unit with our trusted and proven partner, the Sembcorp Marine Group. All seven high specification drillships will be built based on the same design. Given their established track record working in Brazil, we are confident that all of these high-specification drillships will be delivered on time and meeting our schedule. We are confident that Jurong Shipyard and its parent company in Singapore will make our drillship program a success in Brazil.”

A key player in Brazil’s offshore oil & gas industry, Sembcorp Marine’s fully-owned subsidiary Jurong Shipyard has been serving the country’s exploration and production sector for more than two decades. The Group has to-date delivered a total of 19 oil & gas exploration, production and storage platforms for Brazilian oilfields. These platforms contribute approximately half of Brazil’s daily output.

Estaleiro Jurong Aracruz Ltda, Sembcorp Marine’s first overseas Integrated New Yard Facility, is strategically located in the municipal of Aracruz in the state of Espirito Santo, Brazil. The wholly-owned locally incorporated 82.5-hectare new Brazilian shipyard, which broke ground in December 2011, is scheduled for full completion at end 2014. Planned shipyard facilities include a 380 m x 120 m drydock, a 1km berthing quay as well as ancillary piping facilities and steel fabrication workshops. On completion, Estaleiro Jurong Aracruz will have capabilities to undertake the construction of drillships, semi-submersible and jack-up rigs, platforms and supply vessels as well as FPSO integration and topside modules fabrication, in addition to traditional services in drilling rig repairs, ship repairs and modification and upgrade works.