Global Geophysical Reports Net Loss of 28.6 Mln (USA)

Global Geophysical Services, Inc. today reported fourth quarter revenues of $55.3 million, a loss from operations of $12.0 million, a net loss of $28.6 million and a loss of $0.76 per share.

Results for the fourth quarter included several non-recurring charges. These non-recurring charges include an income tax expense charge of $14.3 million related to foreign tax credits and $1.7 million in crew shutdown costs. The quarter results also included the provision of $3.0 million bad debt expense.

Global’s revenues were $339.0 million for the full year 2012, compared with $385.4 million for 2011, a decrease of 12%. Operating income for 2012 was $42.5 million, compared to an operating income of $44.9 million for 2011. EBITDA, adjusted for Multi-client amortization was $70.6 million for the full year 2012, compared with $74.3 million for the full year 2011.

“Global’s fourth quarter results were a disappointment as execution issues in certain programs and delays in library late sale closures impacted the top line. Since joining the company four months ago, we have started and are continuing to make a number of changes to address the issues contributing to the fourth quarter’s performance. We expect those changes to result in improved operating performance starting in the second half of 2013,” commented Richard White, President and Chief Executive Officer.

“The company’s backlog at the end of December 2012 was $101 million, comprised of $35 million for Proprietary Services and $66 million for Multi-client Services. Although down from the end of the third quarter, we have added a number of additional Proprietary programs since the start of the year to the company’s backlog. On a pro-forma basis, the effect of recent program additions would have increased backlog above third quarter levels. Going forward, we are focused on shifting our data acquisition revenue mix to a greater weighting of proprietary programs.

“Despite the most recent performance, the overall market environment remains robust. During the fourth quarter, we expanded our crew count in the Kurdistan region of Iraq and commenced new data acquisition programs in Paraguay. In further support of the company’s international operations, we are establishing a new office in Dubai to support our Europe, Africa, Middle East (EAME) operations. Although previously managed from the U.S., we are committed to creating a presence close to our customers and key partners to serve this vital region.

“Global is also making meaningful progress on its Microseismic services offerings. Our Tomographic Fracture ImagingTM (TFI) technology is garnering broader acceptance and has now also been applied in the reprocessing of microseismic data that had been previously acquired and processed using alternative methods. We believe that Global is well positioned to support the evolving reservoir characterization market using a combination of our TFI technologies, our data library assets, and Autoseis recording platform.

“Although it will take several quarters to implement the transition we are pursuing, we remain confident that the company’s investments in its asset portfolio and service offerings are well positioned to support the current and emerging needs of our worldwide customer base,” concluded White.

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Press Release, February 25, 2013