STAVANGER, Norway, Oct. 17, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Smedvig (NYSE:SMVa)(NYSE:SMVb) has been awarded a letter of intent by Total for the semi-submersible self-erecting tender rig West Menang offshore West Africa. The drilling assignment has a firm duration of 4 wells estimated to 440 days, with options for an additional 5 wells. The contract value for the firm period is estimated to approximately US$ 37 million.
The new contract is scheduled to start in continuation of the current contract with Brunei Shell Petroleum, in May 2004.
West Menang, which was delivered in 1999, is an advanced drilling unit designed with enhanced drilling capabilities for improved operational efficiency and safety.
"This contract adds to the geographic diversity of the Smedvig's activities and is a breakthrough for our tender rig concept in one of the world's fastest growing offshore markets," said CEO Kjell E. Jacobsen in Smedvig asa.
Analyst Contact: Jim Datland, Investor Relations Manager +47 51 50 99 19 Media Contact: Alf C Thorkildsen, Chief Financial Officer +47 51 50 99 19
Smedvig asa is an offshore drilling contractor headquartered in Stavanger, Norway. The company provides drilling and well services in the North Atlantic and Southeast Asia. Smedvig's main activities are divided into mobile units, tender rigs and platform drilling. Smedvig has a fleet of three modern drilling rigs, one drillship and nine tender rigs and has one tender rig under construction. The company holds contracts for production drilling, well services and maintenance on fixed installations.
This news release includes forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect current views with respect to future events and are, by their nature, subject to significant risks and uncertainties, because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. Many factors could influence actual developments and performance and could cause them differ materially from those described by these forward-looking statements. For a discussion of these factors please see "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year 2002 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and available on our website at www.smedvig.no.
Smedvig asa
P.O. Box 110, 4001 Stavanger Phone: +47 51 50 99 00 Fax: +47 51 50 96 88 Web site: www.smedvig.no E-mail: smedvig@smedvig.no