by Mikael Holter (Bloomberg) Explorers in 2015 discovered only about a tenth as much oil as they have annually on average since 1960. This year, they’ll probably find even less, spurring new fears about their ability to meet future demand. With oil prices down by more than half since the price collapse two years ago, drillers have cut their exploration … [Read more...]
Seadrill Beats Estimates, Says Oil Industry May Be ‘At or Near Bottom’
OSLO, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Norway-listed offshore driller Seadrill, once the crown jewel in the business empire of shipping tycoon John Fredriksen, said the oil industry may be turning a corner as it posted second-quarter earnings above forecasts on Thursday. At the height of the oil price boom, the company was the world's largest offshore driller by market capitalisation, but … [Read more...]
Deepwater Drillers “Will Not Recover Anytime Soon” Despite Supplier Uptick, Says Analysts
BY GWLADYS FOUCHE AND STEPHEN JEWKES (Reuters) European suppliers to the oil industry, hit by their customers' spending cutbacks over the past two years, have produced stronger than expected second-quarter earnings and are cautiously pointing to signs of recovery in demand. These companies, which encompass oil drillers, engineering groups, oil services providers and seismic … [Read more...]
Seadrill Will Make Second Bond Swap in a Month to Trim Debt Load
By Rakteem Katakey (Bloomberg) -- Seadrill Ltd., the offshore driller seeking to cut its debt load, agreed to swap bonds for equity in the second such deal in less than a month. The company will issue 7.5 million new shares with par value of $2 apiece to some holders of its bonds due September 2017, in exchange for $50 million of debt principal, it said Wednesday. The … [Read more...]
Fredriksen’s Seadrill Says Rig Market Has Bottomed
By Mikael Holter (Bloomberg) -- Seadrill Ltd., the offshore rig operator controlled by billionaire John Fredriksen, says the worst market downturn in a generation has finally hit bottom, even if a recovery is still a couple of years off. “From a drillers’ perspective, we’re now at the bottom of the market rate-wise,” Chief Executive Officer Per Wullf said in a phone … [Read more...]
Seadrill Makes First Step Toward Refinancing
By Stephen Treloar and Mikael Holter (Bloomberg) -- Seadrill Ltd., the offshore driller with the biggest debt load, reached a deal with its banks to extend its three nearest credit lines and amend covenants as it seeks to ease its burden amid a drop in the demand for offshore rigs. In the “first phase of a broader plan to refinance and recapitalize the business,” Seadrill … [Read more...]
Seadrill Said to Hire Help on Debt Talks
By Luca Casiraghi, Dinesh Nair and Steven Church (Bloomberg) -- Seadrill Ltd., the offshore driller with the biggest debtload, hired Houlihan Lokey Inc. and Morgan Stanley to advise it in negotiations on restructuring $11 billion of loans and bonds, two people familiar with the matter said. Bank lenders to the company formed a committee this month to lead the talks and … [Read more...]
