The
Nasdaq-listed offshore contractor says the $112m letter of intent from an oil
major is tied to the Eirik Raude
(built 2002) and involves a one-well programme offshore Ireland.
Drilling
is scheduled to commence in the in the first quarter next year when the floater wraps up
a project in West Africa, the DryShips offshoot told investors Tuesday.
According
to Michael Webber of Wells Fargo Securities the price tag implies a gross daily
rate of $622,000 or $567,000 assuming mobilisation costs of around $10m.
With
three outstanding letters of intent with a collective value of $1.6bn, the
analyst believes today’s development is particularly good news for shareholders of DryShips, which controls
a 65% in the spin-off.
“We note that Ocean Rig also
continues to work toward the syndication of its $1.35bn credit facility, which
we believe could open the door to incremental fleet growth, likely through its
existing options, which expire in March 2013 but could likely be extended if
necessary,” he added in a client alert.
Nasdaq-listed shares of DryShips soared
6.48% to $2.51 in hours following the offshore update while Ocean Rig
watched its Times Square-quoted stock jump 0.51% before topping out at $17.82 in
midday trading.
