Interim Management Statement

RNS Number : 2507S

Hunting PLC

17 November 2011

 



For Immediate Release

17 November 2011

Hunting PLC

("Hunting" or "the Company" or "the Group")

Interim Management Statement

Hunting PLC (LSE: HTG), the international energy services group today announces its Interim Management Statement for the period 1 July 2011 to 16 November 2011.

Dennis Proctor, Hunting's Chief Executive said,

"The economic climate in Europe and the Americas continues to have minimal impact on the demand for energy.  Rig counts within the Company's various operating regions have risen with operators' drilling plans for 2012 currently remaining steady.  Within this business climate, the Group continues to perform well albeit with some continuing uncertainty related to the issuing of drilling permits for deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.  Group trading for the full year is therefore expected to be in line with market expectations."

Acquisitions Update

Since the Group's 2011 Half Year Results, Hunting has completed the acquisitions of Titan Specialties Ltd. ("Titan"), Dearborn Precision Tubular Products ("Dearborn"), W L Doffing ("Doffing") and Specialty Supply L.P. ("Specialty") absorbing an aggregate net cash consideration of approximately £570m.  Integration on all of the transactions is proceeding in line with expectations.

With the acquisition of Titan, the Company has extended its product reach into the global shale drilling market. Titan's leading perforating systems and associated products increases the number of touch points on a typical shale well and broadens the Group's directional drilling product offering.  The incremental revenue potential from Titan will continue to present good growth opportunities going forward.

Dearborn, Doffing and Specialty all provide MWD/LWD related products and these acquisitions further extend Hunting's manufacturing capabilities and position the Group as a leading provider of bespoke precision manufacturing services.  These companies are complementary to Hunting's existing premium connections and threading activities and to Hunting's substantial technology portfolio, which includes Hunting Innova and NCC's products.  Hunting can now offer a single source solution for MWD/LWD tools.

Hunting offers an extensive range of technology, products and services to its clients.  The Board remains confident of the outlook for energy services, and believes Hunting is well positioned for further growth as it continues to position the Company as a provider of high quality services to the global energy industry.

Well Construction

Hunting's Connections businesses have been driven by a strong order book in the period, supported by improving drilling activity in the Gulf of Mexico and strong customer demand in other key regions.  After a subdued first quarter, the Group's Drilling Tools business has shown an improvement in the year and is now trading strongly.

The segment benefits from the acquisitions of Dearborn, Doffing and Specialty which are trading in line with management's expectations.

Well Completion

Hunting's existing Well Completion businesses have seen increased momentum in the reporting period, with strong demand seen particularly in the Group's Asia-Pacific operations.  With the continued demand for shale related drilling products, the Group's premium threading businesses also remains strong.

Titan, whose well completion products will be reported within this segment, continues to trade in line with management's expectations.

Well Intervention

Despite a strong order book, as previously advised, National Coupling continues to experience customer delays with regulations related to drilling in the Gulf of Mexico leading to a deferral of profits into 2012. Other operations within Well Intervention are trading in line with management's expectations.

Financial Position

During the reporting period the Group completed four acquisitions, absorbing approximately £570m of net cash.

On the 5 August 2011, the Company issued 13,175,838 new ordinary shares raising net proceeds of £83.5m in support of the acquisition of Titan.  On 16 September 2011 the Company entered into a new £375m multi currency borrowing facility, which replaced the existing £120m borrowing facility.

The Group's net debt position as at 31 October 2011 was approximately £225m.

For further information please visit www.huntingplc.com or contact:

Hunting PLC Dennis Proctor, Chief Executive Peter Rose, Finance Director	Tel: [phone] Tel: [phone]
Buchanan Richard Darby Jeremy Garcia	Tel: [phone]

MWD/LWD - measurement while drilling/logging while drilling

Notes to Editors:

About Hunting PLC

Hunting PLC is an international energy services provider to the world's leading upstream oil and gas companies. Established in 1874, it is a fully listed public company traded on the London Stock Exchange. The Company maintains a corporate office in Houston and is headquartered in London. As well as the United Kingdom, the Company has principal operations in Canada, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Mexico, Netherlands, Singapore, United Arab Emirates and the United States of America.

 

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