Four Year Framework Agreement Signed with Centrica

RNS Number : 5925T

Plexus Holdings Plc

09 January 2017

 

Plexus Holdings PLC / Index: AIM / Epic: POS / Sector: Oil equipment & services

This announcement contains inside information

9 January 2017

Plexus Holdings PLC ('Plexus' or 'the Company')

4 Year Framework Agreement Signed with Centrica

Plexus Holdings PLC, the AIM quoted oil and gas engineering services business and owner of the proprietary POS-GRIP® friction-grip method of wellhead engineering, known for its safety, time and cost saving capabilities, is pleased to announce it has signed a four year framework agreement ('the Agreement') with Centrica Norway ('Centrica').  Under the terms of the Agreement, Plexus will supply Centrica with surface wellhead and mudline equipment services for jack up exploration wells of all pressure ratings in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.  

Plexus has previously supplied Centrica with its best in class wellhead equipment for a number of wells in the North Sea including those on the Butch exploration and appraisal wells (now known as the Oda projects) in the Norwegian sector between 2012 and 2014.  Under the terms of the four year Agreement, Centrica can request up to three further one year extensions following the end of the initial four year term. 

Plexus' CEO Ben Van Bilderbeek said, "To secure a framework agreement with a longstanding customer is in our view testament to the excellent track record we have built up over the years, particularly in the North Sea as a supplier of best in class wellhead equipment to a roster of blue chip operators, including Centrica.  We have always believed that once an operator experiences the superior qualities in terms of performance, reliability and safety of our POS-GRIP enabled equipment out in the field for themselves, Plexus is strongly placed to win business where there are jack-up exploration wells to be drilled.  Centrica recently stated that 'the North Sea is a focus area and we are looking forward to working with it under this framework agreement as new exploration well opportunities arise'.  

"While the Agreement is specifically for supplying exploration wells in the Norwegian North Sea, we are confident that we can use this as a platform from which we can tender for future business with Centrica in other geographies and in other markets such as production and subsea.  Together with the recent announcements of agreed production cuts by both OPEC and certain non-OPEC producers, we are hopeful that the point at which supply and demand reach equilibrium has been brought forward, and that as a result exploration activity will soon begin to pick up from today's historic lows.   In the meantime, as today's framework agreement demonstrates, we continue to work hard to ensure that Plexus is well placed to hit the ground running once the exploration sector reignites."

**ENDS**

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

Ben van Bilderbeek	Plexus Holdings PLC	Tel: [phone]
Graham Stevens	Plexus Holdings PLC	Tel: [phone]
Nick Tulloch	Cenkos Securities PLC	Tel: [phone]
Derrick Lee	Cenkos Securities PLC	Tel: [phone]
Frank Buhagiar	St Brides Partners Ltd	Tel: [phone]
Isabel de Salis	St Brides Partners Ltd	Tel: [phone]

NOTES:

Plexus Holdings PLC

Plexus Holdings PLC is an AIM traded oil and gas engineering and services business, which supplies wellhead and mudline suspension equipment together with associated equipment and services for exploration and production applications.  Based in Aberdeen, with a presence in London, Cairo, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Texas, it has developed and patented a friction-grip method of engineering for oil and gas field wellheads and connectors, POS-GRIP®, which involves deforming one tubular member against another to effect gripping and sealing.

To date, POS-GRIP wellhead systems have been used in over 400 oil and gas wells by numerous international companies.  In particular, the technology has advantages in High Pressure/High Temperature (HPHT) and Extreme HPHT (X-HPHT) oil and gas environments, for which there is growing global demand and where Plexus is being increasingly recognised as the supplier of choice.  Plexus has recently successfully completed the supply of an X-HPHT exploration wellhead to Total for the Solaris well which is believed to be the deepest and highest pressure well ever drilled in the North Sea.

Plexus is also extending its technology into an increasing number of other applications:

·     In September 2015 it launched a prototype of the 'Python™ Subsea Wellhead' developed as part of a Joint Industry Project in collaboration with BG, Royal Dutch Shell, Wintershall, Maersk, TOTAL, Tullow Oil, ENI, LR Senergy, Transocean and Oil States Industries Inc. 

·     It recently also completed a JIP in conjunction with Maersk to develop a downhole HPHT Tieback connector which for the first time allows the reconnection of production casing to HPHT exploration and production wells.

·     It developed and qualified a new product called POS-SET Connector™ which is designed to re-establish a connection onto rough conductor casing previously cut above the seabed to facilitate tieback or abandonment operations.

Having proven its POS-GRIP technology in the niche jack-up exploration market Plexus is now focused on extending its applications into the much larger multi-billion dollar land and platform production well market as well as actively pursuing a first time use of the new Python subsea wellhead into the important subsea sector. Such strategic initiatives will be pursued both organically and with trading partners and licencees.

 

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