In the first quarter of 2024, PetroVietnam Drilling & Well Service Corporation (PV Drilling) estimated nearly 1,700 billion VND in revenue and over 200 billion VND in profit before tax, an increase of over 35% and over 230%, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
The achievement of such positive business results is largely attributed to the company's rig fleet, which has been operating at full capacity throughout the first quarter of 2024 with a 34% higher day rate than last year. Currently, all of PV Drilling’s rigs have secured contracts overseas. The jack-up rigs PV DRILLING I, PV DRILLING III, and PV DRILLING VI are operating in Malaysia. Another jack-up rig, PV DRILLING II, is currently contracted for work in neighboring Indonesia. The semi-submersible TAD rig PV DRILLING V continues drilling activities in Bruneian waters. On the land rig side, PV DRILLING 11 is currently deployed in the North African country of Algeria.
All of PV Drilling’s rigs have secured contracts overseas.
The global oil and gas market continues to receive positive outlooks. According to a report in April 2024 by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the average price throughout 2024 for Brent crude is forecasted to reach 89 USD/barrel. In the short term, the report also anticipated the Brent crude oil price to remain at 90 USD/barrel in the second quarter of 2024 as inventories decrease sharply. The high oil price is a major driver for the booming exploration and production activities, ramping up the demand for rigs.
Domestic drilling activities are also warming up as many campaigns are expected to commence, such as Vietsovpetro’s long-term drilling campaign in Ca Tam field, Murphy Oil’s wells in Lac Da Vang field, the PTM STT-2B drilling program, the appraisal and development of DHN field, as well as shorter drilling campaigns for Hoang Long – Hoan Vu JOC, JVPC, SK Earthon, ENI, etc. Most notably, PetroVietnam Oil and Gas Group (PVN) is actively preparing for activities in Block B – O Mon, a large-scale project with a total capex reaching 12 billion USD. Drilling programs for the Block B – O Mon project are expected to commence in 2025.
In terms of demand for jack-up rigs in Southeast Asia, forecasts by S&P Petrodata predict an average demand of 37 for 2024, anticipated to increase to 38.6 for 2025 [Source: World Rig Forecast – Jan 2024]. The number of market surveys for jack-ups to undertake work in 2024 and 2025 continues to rise in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam while the region’s rig count and the number of newbuilds remain limited. This situation will boost rig utilization as well as raise day rates to a higher level.
For drilling contractors like PV Drilling, high regional demand means an incremental drive in opportunities. This is also a good time for PV Drilling to invest and cooperate with partners for more chartered rigs and necessary equipment to prepare for clients’ drilling programs.
Overview of the first HSEQ internal conference in 2024.
Besides business activities, PV Drilling continues to focus on the harmonious development of ESG (Environment, Social, and Governance) criteria to maintain the Corporation's sustainable development strategy. In the first quarter of 2024, PV Drilling hosted events such as the annual Health – Safety – Environment – Quality (HSEQ) Conference for 2023, the Science and Technology Council review conference for the 2022-2024 term, and community programs to build schools in Nam Dinh province and Vinh Long province. Training programs for corporate culture and staff development are also implemented to improve management.
Closely following market dynamics, seizing opportunities, consolidating internal strength, enhancing service quality, and investing/cooperating with partners to meet demands shall be the new drivers contributing to PV Drilling's continued growth in 2024 and beyond.
PV Drilling's PR Team.