Topaz awarded $100 million Dragon Oil Contract

Topaz Energy and Marine (Topaz), a leading offshore support vessel (OSV) company, yesterday announced a new $100 million contract with Dragon Oil, the upstream oil and gas subsidiary of Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) whose principal asset is the Cheleken Contract Area, in the eastern section of the Caspian Sea, offshore Turkmenistan.

Topaz is a subsidiary of Renaissance, a publicly traded company listed on the Muscat Securities Market in Oman.

Under the terms of the contract, Topaz will supply Dragon Oil Turkmenistan with six vessels, comprising five anchorhandlers and one Emergency Recovery and Response Vessel. The contract has already commenced with vessel mobilisation and operation ramp-up under way. The contract is scheduled for a five year term with a two year option and brings Topaz’s market leading revenue backlog above $1.5 billion.

The contract award demonstrates Topaz’s ability to secure substantial, longterm contracts in a weak market by offering clients a young fleet equipped with the latest technology, aligning with its clients’ needs to deliver cost, efficiency and safety benefits.

Topaz has been active in Turkmenistan since 2010 and is committed to the country and the wider Caspian region. Out of a global fleet of 97 vessels, 62 of Topaz’s OSVs are deployed in the Caspian region, servicing the exploration, development and production needs of major companies such as BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil and Saipem in Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.

René Kofod-Olsen, CEO, Topaz Energy and Marine, said, “This is a critical contract win for Topaz. It not only increases our revenue backlog above $1.5 billion — the highest in the industry — but it also demonstrates the trust that Dragon Oil has placed in our ability to deliver the technology and safety capabilities our clients increasingly require. Our solid funding also means that we are able to structure long-term commercial terms which offer predictability and value to our clients at very low counterparty risk. We look forward to supporting the development of Turkmenistan’s offshore hydrocarbon resources through the provision of Topaz’s safe, reliable and competitive offshore vessel services.”

Topaz Energy and Marine is a leading international offshore support vessel company providing logistics support and marine solutions to the global energy industry with primary focus on the Caspian Sea, the Middle East, West Africa and Subsea operations in the North Sea and the Pacific. Headquartered in Dubai, Topaz Energy and Marine operates an existing fleet of 97 offshore support vessels with an average age of approximately 9 years. In addition, Standard Chartered Private Equity holds a minority position in the company.