ADES.L Regulatory News (ADES)

ADES wins new Egyptian offshore drilling contract for ADMARINE 88 and renewal for ADMARIN V from Eni joint venture; grows backlog for ADMARINE VIII

Contract for a new offshore drilling campaign and the renewal of an existing contract with the Italian oil major both come despite current downward pressure on global oil prices

3 July 2017 | For immediate release

London & Dubai - ADES International Holding Ltd. (LON: ADES), the London-listed company providing offshore and onshore oil and gas drilling and production services in the Middle East and Africa through its subsidiaries, has been awarded a contract by ENI IEOC, the Egyptian subsidiary of Italian oil major Eni, for a new drilling campaign offshore Egypt.

The contract was awarded by Belayim Petroleum Co. (Petrobel), a joint venture between ENI IEOC and Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), for a three-month drilling campaign to be led by ADES' offshore jack-up drill rig, ADMARINE 88. The contract has the scope to be extended on a well-by-well basis thereafter.

Petrobel has also renewed an existing contract for ADES' ADMARINE V offshore jack-up drill rig for a six-month period on a call out basis, following its recent expiry, with an option to extend the contract for a further six months. Both contracts were chartered for work on Petrobel-Eni concessions in Egypt's Gulf of Suez.

ADES has also entered a farm-in agreement for its ADMARINE VIII offshore jack-up drill rig with Fanar Petroleum Company, under the umbrella of its existing contract with the South Abu Zenima Petroleum Company (Petrozenima). The farm-in agreement's planned scope of work will see the rig perform a FRAC job on the concession's North July well to improve its productivity. Work is expected to commence before the end of July 2017.

Commenting on the contract awards, Dr. Mohamed Farouk, Chief Executive Officer of ADES International Holding, said:

"Our ability to secure new awards and extend existing ones even during a period of oil price decline is a testament to the strength of our business model and the quality of our drilling and workover services at highly competitive rates.

"We are excited to renew our partnership with one of North Africa's leading joint ventures with whom we have a 10-year track record of success. Eni and other major international oil companies operating in our present-day geographies of Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Egypt appreciate the exceptional value for money we offer by deploying fit-for-purpose refurbished legacy rigs and world-class crews to assets in shallow, non-harsh environments," Farouk added.

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NOTES TO EDITORS

About ADES International Holding.

ADES International Holding extends oil and gas drilling and production services through its subsidiaries and is a leading service provider in the Middle East and Africa, offering onshore contract drilling as well as workover and production services in Egypt, Algeria and Saudi Arabia. The company is pre-qualified in markets including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, India, Mexico and the Saudi-Kuwaiti Neutral Zone. Its over 1,200 employees serve clients including major national oil companies ("NOCs") such as Saudi Aramco and Sonatrach as well as joint ventures of NOCs with global majors including BP and Eni. While maintaining a superior health, safety and environmental record, the Group currently has a fleet of nine jack-up offshore drilling rigs, three onshore drilling rigs, a jack-up barge, and a mobile offshore production unit ("MOPU"), which includes a floating storage and offloading unit.

The Group is the largest offshore drilling operator in Egypt by number of rigs. www.adesgroup.com 

About ENI IEOC/ Belayim Petroleum Co. (Petrobel)

Italian Egyptian Oil Company ("IEOC") is a subsidiary of Italian oil major Eni, acquired in 1954 and wholly-owned by 1961, with activities including oil and gas exploration and production through its branches in Egypt: IEOC Exploration BV, IEOC Production BV, and IEOC SpA, and operating through its joint operating companies Petrobel and Agiba. IEOC holds over 57 licences covering Egypt's three main hydrocarbon basins, namely the Gulf of Suez/Red Sea, the Nile Delta/Mediterranean offshore and the Western Desert.

Forward‑looking statements

Certain statements contained in this announcement, including any information as to the Group's strategy, plans or future financial or operating performance constitute "forward looking statements". These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology, including the terms "believes", "estimates", "anticipates", "projects", "expects", "intends", "aims", "plans", "predicts", "may", "will", "seeks" or "should" or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy, plans, objectives, goals, future events or intentions. These forward looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts. They appear in a number of places throughout this announcement and include statements regarding the intentions, beliefs or current expectations of the Directors of the Company concerning, amongst other things, the Group's results of operations, financial condition and performance, prospects, growth and strategies and the industry in which the Group operates.

By their nature, forward looking statements address matters that involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. Forward looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and the Group's actual results of operations and financial condition, and the development of the business sector in which the Group operates, may differ materially from those suggested by the forward looking statements contained in this announcement. In addition, even if the Group's results of operations and financial condition, and the development of the industry in which the Group operates, are consistent with the forward looking statements contained in this announcement, those results or developments may not be indicative of results or developments in subsequent periods.

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