Cyprus-based offshore drilling services company SD Standard Drilling (SDSD) said that Standard Supporter, one of five large platform supply vessels (PSVs), has on 21 January commenced on a well contract, at levels well above operating cost.
The contract length is approximately 100 days, said a press release from the company. All 5 large PSVs wholly owned by SDSD are currently working on term contracts, it said.
“With Standard Supporter commencing the contract with Repsol, all our five large size PSVs are working on term contracts. If options are exercised, we have successfully secured winter coverage for all our large size vessels. It is a challenging winter market so keeping the vessels in operation is key and in line with the company’s strategy. We are now in a good position to meet what we think will be a better market when the spring season arrives”, says Martin Nes, Chairman of the Board of S.D Standard Drilling Plc.
The utilization for the large size PSVs was 90% in the fourth quarter 2018 and 91% for the year 2018.
“Considering the market that we have been in and based on our strategy to not charter out our large vessels on long contracts with low rates, we are satisfied with the utilization,” says Martin Nes, Chairman of the Board of S.D Standard Drilling Plc.
SDSD has ownership in 17 PSVs in total (in addition to FS Arendal that is on a year BB contract that expire end of March 2019). Out of these, 5 large size PSVs are wholly owned and working in North Europe. 8 mid-size vessels are partly owned through ~25% ownership in Northern Supply AS and out of these 8 vessels.
The utilization for the medium size PSVs (including FS Arendal) in fourth quarter 2018 was 81% and 89 % for the year 2018.
New World Supply Ltd (NWS), where SDSD has an ownership of 34.4%, has a fleet of 4 modern mid-size PSVs, after sale of two vessels in October 2018, all built in 2013. All of the NWS vessels are in lay up. SDSD consider its holding in NWS as a financial investment.