Polarcus shrinks deficit; preps for market uncertainty

Marine seismic player Polarcus has cut its deficit in Q1 2020 despite slightly lower revenues on improved pricing compared to prior year.

The Oslo-listed company reported loss for the Q1 2020 of $4.2 million, on revenues of $66.3 million, versus loss of $5.3 million and revenues of $67.1 million in Q1 2019.

The Polarcus core fleet scored 26 per cent higher revenues in Q1 2020 against Q1 2019 driven by improved pricing.

Polarcus’ EBITDA more than doubled year-on-year from $10 million in Q1 2019 at $22.2 million in 2019.

Vessel utilization for the quarter ended March 31, 2020 was at 89 percent, versus 92 percent in Q1 2019.

The oil price drop and the COVID-19 pandemic during March 2020 impacted the short-term activity outlook of the company.

Premature termination of West Africa project resulted in 6 per cent standby time in the quarter.

In addition, Polarcus backlog took a hit by another cancellation in Asia Pacific which was set for Q2 2020.

Company’s backlog stands at $157 million as of March 31, 2019, versus $170 million same time last year.

Going forward, Polarcus said it will implement business continuity initiatives and cost reduction measures to navigate the current market uncertainty.