Dolphin Geo’s UK unit continues ‘business as usual’ despite bankruptcy in Norway

Pressured by low oil prices, cuts in exploration, low dayrates, and limited prospects for new contracts, Norwegian Dolphin Group, together with its seismic acquisition subsidiary Dolphin Geophysical AS, on Monday filed for bankruptcy.

However, on Wednesday, the company said its UK unit continues business as usual: “The UK processing and multi-client operations of Dolphin Geophysical Ltd continue to operate as normal, despite the Norwegian entities of Dolphin Group ASA together with its subsidiary Dolphin Geophysical AS having filed for bankruptcy on Monday 14 December.”

Dolphin said that the UK entity Dolphin Geophysical Ltd is not a part of the bankruptcy estate. The Singapore and US businesses are also continuing to operate.

Backlog stretches into 2Q 2016

The ongoing processing contracts in the UK are continuing and the banks are supporting a ‘business as usual’ approach, paying staff salaries and maintaining operations. Multi-client sales are also continuing as normal, the company said in a statement.

Gareth Williams, Chief Geophysicist, said: “We will not only continue to fulfill our commitment under existing contracts but will also continue to bid on new projects as well. Our backlog currently stretches well into the second half of 2016 and we will continue to aggressively target suitable additional work.”