The downturn in offshore oil and gas shipping activity has hit the sector hard with Norwegian player GC Rieber the latest to report drastic reduction in revenue.
The Oslo registered firm, which operates 13 advanced special purpose vessels for the subsea, ice/support and marine seismic sectors, saw its operating income fall to NOK86.8million in the first quarter 2016, compared to NOK223.9 million in the first quarter 2015.
EBITDA was negative by NOK9million in the quarter, compared to positive NOK114million in the corresponding period 2015.
The total fleet utilisation was 46%, compared to 84% in the first quarter 2015.
The group had a loss of NOK93.7million in the first quarter 2016, compared to a loss of NOK36.3million in the corresponding period 2015.
The negative result in the first quarter 2016 is mostly due to the loss of long-term contracts on the seismic fleet following the bankruptcy of Dolphin Geophysical in December 2015, and the subsequent low activity in the subsea and seismic segments.
Chief executive Irene Waage Basili: “The market situation in the offshore segments is difficult, which has affected our results.”
“In this challenging market we have, however, secured charter contracts in the spot market for two of our seismic vessels.
Basili said the firm had also secured a contract for the subsea vessel, Polar King, with Nexans Skagerrak for commencement in January 2017.
GC Rieber’s results were announced the same day accommodation vessel provider Prosafe also reported significant drops in revenue in the oil downturn.
Last week, Aberdeen-based Harkand went into administration with the loss of more than 170 jobs, citing the continued flat market for marine activity.