Seadrill sells West Vela drillship

Seadrill Limited has entered into an agreement with Seadrill Partners according to which the company will sell to Seadrill Capricorn Holdings LLC, Seadrill Partners’ 51% owned subsidiary, all of the ownership interests in the entities that own and operate the drillship, the West Vela.

Seadrill Limited says that the Vela acquisition, which is expected to close within 3 days, will be accomplished through a series of purchases, contributions and assumption of debt.

The West Vela

The West Vela is a 6th generation, dynamically positioned drillship delivered from the Samsung shipyard to its current customer, BP, in November 2013. The West Vela is expected to carry out operations in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico until the end of its contract in November 2020.

The implied purchase price of the Vela Acquisition is $900 million, less $433 million of debt outstanding under the existing facility financing the West Vela. Based on Seadrill Partners’ 51% ownership of Capricorn Holdings, its portion of the net purchase price after debt will be $238 million.

Under the terms of the West Vela contract, BP is paying a daily rate of $565,000 per day plus approximately $44,000 per day as a mobilization fee paid over the term of the contract. Under the terms of the acquisition agreement Capricorn Holdings will pay Seadrill $40,000 per day of day rate revenue actually received as well as the $44,000 per day mobilization fee. Seadrill says that both payments will cease at the end of the current contract.