HOUSTON, Oct. 7, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Paragon Offshore plc ("Paragon") (NYSE: PGN) today announced that Paragon has repurchased and cancelled an aggregate principal amount of $60.24 million of its senior unsecured notes at an aggregate cost of $51.64 million including accrued interest.  The repurchases consisted of $27.25 million of its 6.75 percent senior notes due 2022 and $32.99 million of its 7.25 percent senior notes due 2024.   Paragon repurchased the senior notes at an average purchase price of 85.7 percent of face value including accrued interest.  As a result of the repurchases, Paragon expects to recognize a gain on debt retirement, net of the write-off of issuance costs, of approximately $8.4 million, of which approximately $6.9 million will be recorded in the third quarter 2014 with the remainder to be recorded in the fourth quarter 2014.  The repurchases were made using available cash.

"As part of our recent review of alternatives to allocate capital, our board of directors authorized us to spend up to $100 million to repurchase our bonds in the open market," said Paragon's President and Chief Executive Officer, Randall D. Stilley.  "These repurchases are positive steps that increase shareholder value by strengthening our balance sheet and reducing Paragon's annual cash expenses.  Moving forward, we remain committed to allocating capital for the benefit of all shareholders and as part of our strategy, we will continue to evaluate additional debt reduction opportunities."

About Paragon Offshore
Paragon is a global provider of standard specification offshore drilling rigs.  Paragon's drilling fleet consists solely of standard specification rigs and includes 34 jackups and eight floaters (five drillships and three semisubmersibles). Paragon's primary business is contracting its rigs, related equipment and work crews to conduct oil and gas drilling and workover operations for its exploration and production customers on a dayrate basis around the world. Paragon's principal executive offices are located in Houston, Texas. Paragon is a public limited company registered in England and Wales with company number 08814042 and registered office at 20-22 Bedford Row, London, WC1R 4JS, England. Additional information is available at www.paragonoffshore.com.

Forward-Looking Disclosure Statement
This release contains forward-looking statements. Statements regarding the timing and amount any gains on the cancellation of debt, reduction in interest expenses, or additional debt repurchases, as well as any other statements that are not historical facts in this release, are forward-looking statements that involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. These include but are not limited to risks associated with the general nature of the oil and gas industry, risks associated with the operation of Paragon as a separate, publicly traded company, actions by regulatory authorities, customers and other third parties, and other factors detailed in the "Risk Factors" section of Paragon's registration statement on Form 10 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on July 14, 2014, in Paragon's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2014, and in Paragon's other filings with the SEC, which are available free of charge on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated.

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SOURCE Paragon Offshore plc