Rowan announces purchase of two modern jackup rigs
Rowan Companies announced that it has concluded the purchase of two LeTourneau Super 116E jackup rigs, the P-59 and P-60, which were both delivered new into service in 2013, in a public auction from a subsidiary of Petroleo Brasileiro (Petrobras) for $38.5 million per unit. As previously reported on 11 May 2017, Rowan was the high bidder in a Petrobras public auction with a bid price of $30 million per rig. While the high bid was not accepted by Petrobras, both parties agreed to the revised price, after negotiations. Rowan intends to mobilize these modern jackups to the Middle East from their current location in Brazil in late Q1 2018.
Tom Burke, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We consider this purchase an opportunistic investment, made near a cyclical low, at a highly attractive price. Since mid-2015 we have divested five older jackups – Rowan Louisiana, Rowan Juneau, Rowan Alaska, Rowan Gorilla II and Rowan Gorilla III. The addition of these two modern rigs will help renew the Rowan fleet and increase the company’s future earnings capability. We are very familiar with the design and construction of these rigs. We are confident in our ability to integrate these jackups into our existing fleet to generate strong financial returns from this investment and deliver safe, efficient and reliable operations to our customers.”
Rowan also announced that it sold the Cecil Provine in November 2017 for scrap and has cold-stacked the Gorilla IV following the conclusion of its latest contract.
