Semisub rig owner Dolphin Drilling has snapped up a pair of Transocean rigs, the 1987-built Paul B Loyd Jr and the Transocean Leader in a deal worth $61.5m.
The Øystein Stray Spetalen-backed owner of three rigs will raise around $60m via a private placement of shares to finance the deal, which includes an unspecified additional $3m figure. The company’s two largest shareholders Strategic Value Partners and Spetalen’s SD Standard ETC have pre-committed to subscribe for around $13m and $7m, worth of shares, respectively and to back Dolphin with a $15m revolving credit.
Bjørnar Iversen, CEO of Dolphin Drilling said the acquisition, expected to close in the second half of 2023, not only expands the company’s fleet but also enhances earning visibility.
“This transaction signifies an important stride for Dolphin Drilling as we showcase our operational platform’s capacity to incorporate additional assets and generate immediate, robust cash flows for our shareholders. The addition of these efficient rigs allows us to further consolidate the midwater rig segment in a tightening market, characterised by historically low supply and surging dayrates across offshore basins,” Iversen noted.
The Paul B Loyd Jr is currently under contract with Harbour Energy in the UK with the firm period slated to last until September 2024, and a three-year contract lined up worth in total nearly $280m that also comes attached with five one-year extension options. The Transocean Leader is stacked in the UK.
