CEO: Maersk Drilling strong enough to stand on its own after listing

STAVANGER (NoRwAy): Drilling rig contractor Maersk Drilling will provide strong competition for its peers when it is spun off from the AP Moller-Maersk conglomerate next year, its chief executive said.

AP Moller-Maersk said on Aug 17 it would spin off its offshore drilling operation and list it in Copenhagen next year, the latest move by the Danish shipping company to focus entirely on transport and logistics.

“We will be one of the strongest (players) when it comes to the balance sheet, we will be one of the strongest when it comes to the backlog (of orders),” Maersk Drilling chief executive Joern Madsen told Reuters on the sidelines of an energy conference in Stavanger, Norway.

“We will be able to compete with the rest of the crowd,” he said.

Maersk Drilling counts BP, Aker BP, Equinor and Total among its biggest customers.

News of the listing came after the conglomerate tried to find a buyer for the unit, whose competitors include Transocean , Seadrill and Odjfell Drilling.

Madsen reiterated on Tuesday that Maersk had “looked at various options” but did not provide further details about the process.

“At the end of the day, it gives shareholders an opportunity to be a part of a potential (rig market) recovery ... I’m very happy about the decision myself,” he said.

Maersk has not publicly put a price tag on the drilling division, but analysts have previously valued it at around US$4.8bil.

Maersk Drilling reported a 2% increase in second-quarter EBITDA to US$159mil, as sales grew around 5% in the quarter to US$366mil. — Reuters