Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC Drilling acquires offshore jack-up rigs for $140m

Abu Dhabi-based ADNOC Drilling Company has signed a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) to acquire two additional premium offshore jack-up drilling units (rigs).

The two new rigs have a combined cost of $140m, and will join the ADNOC Drilling fleet and commence operations by the end of 2022, the company said in a statement.

The acquisition is the fourth confirmed by the company in recent months – an agreement for two premium drilling units was signed on May 30, another for one premium drilling unit penned on June 10, and the most recent for one unit signed on August 24. The company plans on making further acquisitions.

Read: Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC Drilling acquires offshore jack-up rig for $70m

Abdulrahman Abdullah Al Seiari, chief executive officer of ADNOC Drilling, commented: “The acquisition of these new jack-up rigs consolidates our position as the owner of one of the largest operating jack-up fleets in the world and will significantly boost Company revenues, cash flow and shareholder returns over the coming years.”

ADNOC Drilling Company was listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) in October of last year.

Read: ADNOC Drilling lists IPO on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange

Since its listing, ADNOC Drilling has expanded its fleet from 96 to 105 owned rigs, as of July 31, 2022. With the latest addition, the company will own one of the largest operating fleets of offshore jack-up rigs in the world, totalling 32, the statement added.

The company reported $1.27bn in revenue for the first half of 2022, recording a 13 per cent increase year-on-year, while its net income increased 34 per cent to total $379m.

Meanwhile, the company was awarded two contracts totalling over $3.4bn to hire eight jack-up offshore rigs, it announced last month.

Read more: Contracts worth over Dhs12.6bn awarded to ADNOC Drilling to expand offshore drilling activities