Gulf Marine Services Regulatory News (GMS)

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the financial statements, prepared in accordance with the relevant financial reporting framework, give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company and the undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole;

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the strategic report includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the Company and the undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole, together with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties that they face; and

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the annual report and financial statements, taken as a whole, are fair, balanced and understandable and provide the information necessary for shareholders to assess the Company's performance, business model and strategy."

Risk profile

Mitigation, monitoring and assurance

STRATEGIC

The macroeconomic environment influences the demand for our services. A sustained period of low oil prices could affect the demand for the Group's oil extraction support services. This could lead to lower utilisation or lower charter day rates causing profit margins to fall.

Significant changes in the market-place as a result of the actions of our competitors or the entrance of new competitors may jeopardise our market share or adversely affect utilisation levels or charter day rate levels achieved.

Over-exposure to any one geographic market or loss of a major client or a reduction in activity of a major client could impact our performance.

Construction and modification flexibility for clients

Our vessels are built to be as flexible as possible allowing us to compete for a wide share of the market, helping us to maximise utilisation levels and charter day rates. The Group is also able to more easily modify assets in its own yard to satisfy client requirements where necessary.

Focus on low cost of production areas such as MENA

A substantial proportion of the Group's client base and revenues are generated in the MENA region, where the cost of oil production is generally lower than in other parts of the world.

Growth and expansion

The Group has expansion of its geographical footprint as one of its long term strategic aims as it seeks to diversify into other markets. Where possible we strive to have a geographical balance of our operations by not limiting our portfolio of clients to one country.

In addition we are further expanding the range of well activities that our vessels can perform. The Group recently developed the cantilever concept for its Large Class vessels. It is anticipated that this concept should significantly expand our service offering, allowing the Group to compete for a greater range of well services work. It remains the intention of the Group to further expand the fleet, subject to future market demand.

Opex v capex

The Group provides cost-effective services mainly in the opex phase of oil companies' budgets, supporting long-term oil production which historically has tended to be less cyclical than capex phase work.

Cost management

The Group is focused on controlling costs in order to help achieve appropriate profit margins whilst having the ability to offer competitive pricing to clients.

COMMERCIAL

The reliance of the Group on a limited number of blue chip clients may expose us to losses in the event of client relationship disruptions.

The Group may not be able to win new contracts or retain existing contracts including clients not opting to exercise contractual option periods because of the actions of competitors. This could lead to lower vessel utilisation or lower charter day rates causing profit margins to fall.

The Group may not be able to secure long term contracts or certain clients could cancel contracts, which may lead to commercial downtime between contracts and lower overall average utilisation.

Flexibility and innovation

We seek to continually improve our offering through innovation including new vessel designs and specification improvements by responding directly to client feedback.

Market knowledge and operational expertise

The Group has a clear record of established long term relationships in the MENA region and North West Europe, which helps provide a clear understanding of our clients' requirements and operating standards. We believe that the Group continues to have a competitive edge over most other alternative providers of vessels through our operational expertise and the high quality specifications of our offshore solutions.

Tender approach

We compete in tenders for all vessels nearing the end of their firm contracts, ensuring that, if a client chooses not to exercise their option, other opportunities should not be missed. The Group continually monitors and tracks its pipeline of new contract opportunities. When negotiating contracts, where possible, the Group seeks to exclude client termination rights. In addition, our robust operating standards result in minimal downtime which helps ensure that clients are not given cause to cancel contracts through non-performance.

FINANCIAL

Macro and micro economic events, such as a sustained low oil price, may impact our ability to raise finance, achieve forecast, effectively manage our working capital and service our financial obligations.

A sustained reduction in charter day rates and/or utilisation levels could lead to a breach in certain debt covenants.

Failure of the Group to service its debts and comply with debt covenants could result in negative repercussions for the Group including restriction of funding.

The Group may use external funding in financing major projects, and inability to obtain the required funding may hamper the successful undertaking of capital-intensive projects

Key performance indicators (KPIs)

Transparent KPIs are used for reporting to track progress. The KPIs are reviewed regularly to ensure Management has all the necessary information to make timely financial decisions.

Availability of funding

The Group has a committed banking facility in place that provides access to funding and now that the current new build programme is coming to an end, the Group is forecast to begin deleveraging.

Policies and procedures

We adhere to Group-wide financial and accounting policies which underpin our approach to risk management.

Management and Board reporting

The Management and the Board regularly monitor the Group's debt obligations and funding requirements and seek to ensure that sufficient funds are always in place to meet the needs of the business as well as maintaining adequate headroom over debt covenants thus minimising the risk of breach.

HEALTH, SAFETY, SECURITY, ENVIRONMENT AND QUALITY

The Group may suffer commercial and reputational damage as a result of an environmental or safety incident involving our employees, visitors or contractors.

Our operations have an inherent safety risk due to our offshore operations. We have a fundamental obligation to protect our people and recognise the implications of poor safety procedures.

Safety awareness

Safety and assurance continues to be a top priority and is underpinned by our HSSEQ management system and strong safety-focused culture. Management ensures appropriate safety practices and procedures, disaster recovery plans and the insurance coverage of all commercial contracts are in place both prior to acceptance and during contract delivery.

Training and compliance

Our employees undergo continuous training and sensitisation on operational best practices.

Scheduled maintenance

The Group follows regular maintenance schedules on its vessels and the condition of the vessels is consistently monitored.

COMPLIANCE AND REGULATION

Non-compliance with anti-bribery and corruption regulations could damage stakeholder relations and lead to reputational and financial loss.

Failure to appropriately identify and comply with laws and regulations and other regulatory statutes in new and existing markets could lead to regulatory investigations.

Code of conduct

The Group has a Code of Conduct which employees are required to comply with when conducting business on behalf of the Group; this includes anti-bribery and corruption policies.

Due diligence

Prior to venturing into new markets, the Group performs substantial due diligence work and obtains an understanding of the governing laws and regulations. Group legal and external counsel support are utilised as necessary.

OPERATIONAL

There is a risk that the Group's assets may not be fit for purpose or may fail to operate in the manner intended by Management. Failure to deliver the expected operational performance could result in reputational damage, litigation, reduced profit margins or loss of clients.

Changes in the political regimes, civil and political unrest or sanctions in the jurisdictions in which we operate could adversely affect our operations.

Vessel monitoring

The Group constantly monitors the condition of the vessels and other equipment which undergo mandatory dry docking within the specified timeframes. The Group has policies and procedures in place such as the Planned Maintenance System to ensure that the vessels undergo regular preventative maintenance.

Emergency plans and insurance

For all our major assets and areas of operation, the Group maintains emergency preparedness plans. We regularly review the insurance coverage over the Group's assets to ensure adequate cover is in place.

Constant review

The Group remains vigilant to potential changes and risks and may engage with governments and legal counsel to ensure a comprehensive view of our stakeholders is presented. The Group constantly monitors the ever-changing political landscape in the regions that are considered volatile or unpredictable.

PEOPLE

The Group's success depends on our ability to attract and retain sufficiently qualified and experienced personnel, particularly at senior management levels.

Failure to attract, develop and retain sufficient competent crew to support our clients' needs could result in operational issues on-board vessels.

Succession planning

The Group maintains detailed management succession plans for key personnel which are monitored by the Group HR team. The current macroeconomic environment has resulted in a wider external talent pool available for certain roles within the Group.

As the Group's new build programme has neared completion, key Technical personnel who were involved in vessel construction projects, have been integrated within the Operations Department to assist in vessel modification and maintenance projects. This enables the Group to retain key technical skills and expertise in our fleet of high quality vessels.

Learning and development

The Group is committed to providing bespoke training and development paths for key personnel and invests heavily in learning and development with a major focus on regular training for our safety critical, senior operational and management roles.

Competitive remuneration packages

The Group has a competitive remuneration structure that aims to attract, motivate and retain suitably qualified personnel through performance-based reward practices.

INVESTMENTS

Delays in completion, or errors in assessing the impact of new strategic expansion projects could result in decreased margins and market share.

Board oversight

The Board has oversight of approving and monitoring strategic projects.

Project management

Extensive project management controls and processes are adhered to throughout project life cycles.

Gulf Marine Services PLC

Duncan Anderson

John Brown

Tel: +971 (2) 5028888

Anne Toomey

Tel: +44 (0) 1296 622736

Brunswick

Patrick Handley - UK

Will Medvei - UK

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7404 5959

Jade Mamarbachi - UAE

Tel: +971 (0) 50 600 3829