Pacific Drilling had an outstanding 2013, CEO says

Pacific Drilling S.A.  today announced revenue of $200.5 million and net income of $25.7 million or $0.12 per diluted share for the fourth quarter of 2013.

This compares to revenue of $193.2 million and net income of $30.3 million or $0.14 per diluted share for the third quarter of 2013. In the fourth quarter of 2012, the company had revenue of $191.9 million and net income of $16.5 million or $0.08 per diluted share.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, net income excluding $66.6 million in non-recurring charges related to the June 2013 refinancing of our credit facilities was $92.1 million or $0.43 per diluted share, an increase of $81.8 million over the prior year net income excluding charges. For the full year 2013, net income as reported was $25.5 million or $0.12 per diluted share on revenue of $745.6 million, as compared to prior year net income of $34.0 million or $0.16 per diluted share on revenue of $638.1 million. A reconciliation of net income excluding charges to reported net income is included in an accompanying schedule to this release.

CEO Chris Beckett commented, “Pacific Drilling had an outstanding year in 2013, in which we demonstrated that our focus on performance excellence using a consistent fleet of high specification drillships staffed by dedicated offshore professionals can deliver industry leading results. With the commencement of the Pacific Khamsin’s contract in December, we began the next phase of our company’s growth, which we expect to continue at a significant pace over the next two years as we begin operations with the Pacific Sharav, Pacific Meltem and Pacific Zonda.”

Regarding the market for high specification drillships, Beckett added, “Consistent with our expectations, the market for offshore rigs is increasingly impacted by clients’ preferences for advanced drilling capabilities. Demand for ultra-deepwater drillships is increasingly segmented between the newest and most capable rigs and their 5th generation predecessors as clients recognize the fundamental benefits of the latest generation of rigs. The number of market inquiries for high specification rigs has increased in the early part of 2014 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2013, and we continue to see demand for modern ultra-deepwater rigs exceed forecasted supply over the next several years. Our strong operating performance led to the recent two-year conditional commitment for the Pacific Bora and supports our ongoing negotiations for contract extension of the Pacific Mistral and a maiden contract on the Pacific Meltem, one of the few remaining high specification drillships available for a 2014 contract commencement.”