SDLP - Seadrill Partners LLC acquires the tender rig T15
May 07 2013 - 9:24AM
London, United Kingdom, May 7, 2013 - Seadrill
Partners LLC (NYSE: SDLP) ("Seadrill Partners" or the "Company")
announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire
the companies that own and operate the tender rig T-15 from
Seadrill Limited ("Seadrill") for a total purchase price of US$210
million, less approximately US$100 million of debt outstanding
under the credit facility secured by the T-15. The balance of the
purchase price will be financed with vendor financing provided by
Seadrill in the form of a loan in the amount of approximately
US$110 million. The transaction is expected to close prior to the
end of May 2013.
The T-15 is contracted for a five-year period with
Chevron in Thailand at a dayrate of $115,500. The rig is currently
undergoing acceptance testing in Singapore prior to mobilizing to
its drilling location, which is expected to occur by mid-June. The
rig is currently earning a standby dayrate until it arrives in
Thailand and commences operations.
The debt secured by the T-15 matures in December
2017 and has an interest rate of LIBOR plus a margin of 3.25% per
annum. The vendor financing will have a term of three years and
bears an interest rate of LIBOR plus a margin of 5% per annum. It
is expected that the vendor financing will be refinanced prior to
its maturity.
Seadrill Partners management believes that the
acquisition will be accretive to unitholders and has recommended
that, upon completion of the acquisition, the Board of Directors of
Seadrill Partners consider an increase in the quarterly cash
distribution of between US$0.0275 and US$0.0325, an approximate 8%
increase (annualized increase of between $0.11 and $0.13 from the
current annualized distribution rate of $1.55 per common unit),
which would become effective for the distribution with respect to
the quarter ending June 30, 2013. Any such increase would be
conditioned upon, among other things, the closing of the
acquisition, the approval of such increase by the Board and the
absence of any material adverse developments that would make such
an increase inadvisable.
The Board of Directors of Seadrill Partners and
the Conflicts Committee of the Board have approved the purchase
price and vendor financing. The Conflicts Committee retained a
financial advisor, DnB Markets, to assist with its evaluation of
the transaction.
The acquisition of the T-15 is the first step in
Seadrill Partners' growth strategy and the Board is excited about
the Company's future growth prospects.
FORWARD
LOOKING STATEMENTS
This news release includes forward looking
statements. Such statements are generally not historical in nature,
and specifically include statements about the Company's plans,
strategies, business prospects, changes and trends in its business
and the markets in which it operates. In particular, statements
regarding the Company's ability to complete the acquisition of the
T-15 and projected increases in cash distributions are considered
forward looking statements. These statements are made based upon
management's current plans, expectations, assumptions and beliefs
concerning future events impacting the Company and therefore
involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or
implied in the forwardlooking statements, which speak only as of
the date of this news release. Important factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those in the forward
looking statements include, but are not limited to the performance
of the drilling rigs in the Company's fleet, delay in payment or
disputes with customers, fluctuations in the international price of
oil, changes in governmental regulations that affect the Company or
the operations of the Company's fleet, increased competition in the
offshore drilling industry, and general economic, political and
business conditions globally. Consequently, no forward looking
statement can be guaranteed. When considering these forward looking
statements, you should keep in mind the risks described from time
to time in the Company's filings with the SEC, including its Annual
Report on Form 20-F (File No. 001-35704).
The Company undertakes no obligation to update any
forward looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after
the date on which such statement is made or to reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events. New factors emerge from time to
time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of these
factors. Further, the Company cannot assess the impact of each such
factor on its business or the extent to which any factor, or
combination of factors, may cause actual results to be materially
different from those contained in any forward looking
statement.
This
announcement is distributed by Thomson Reuters on behalf of Thomson
Reuters clients.
The owner of this announcement warrants that:
(i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and
other applicable laws; and
(ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and
originality of the
information contained therein.
Source: Seadrill Partners LLC via Thomson Reuters ONE
HUG#1700029
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