UAE-based oil and gas engineering services outfit Lamprell has announced that it saw a 34% drop in profits during the first half, although the company added that its total proposals pipeline was at its highest ever.
Lamprell reported that its revenue was down by 18.3% to US $318.2 million due to lower demand for offshore construction and repair services.
Its order book at the end of July was $417 million, as opposed to a sum of $818 million in August last year.
Lamprell indicated that construction phase of the Offshore Mischief for Scorpion Offshore Limited has significantly advanced and is now planned to be completed during the second quarter of 2010.
However, a newbuild jackup rig project with Riginvest has been delayed while financing issues are explored.
“The first six months of 2009 has been a busy period for Lamprell during which we have delivered our first three EPC contracts all of which have been delivered to our customers on time and on budget. Executing our work to the highest standard, both on time and on budget, remains central to our business and we believe it is the platform for the future growth of our business,” said Nigel McCue, Lamprell’s CEO.
“However, these remain challenging times for the sector as a whole and, as expected, we continue to see a lower level of rig refurbishment and offshore construction activity, mainly in the area of FPSO contract awards, than in the same period last year.
“More positively, we continue to see a high level of interest for the wide spectrum of new build services we offer and our total proposals pipeline is currently at the highest level in the history of the company,” added McCue
