Switzerland-based offshore drilling contractor Transocean said it had made “great progress” in the face of challenging market conditions last year, despite falling into the red.
Full-year revenues at Transocean dropped to $2.97billion in 2017 from $4.16billion a year earlier.
Net losses totalled $3.09billion, a disappointing return compared to its surplus of $827million the previous year.
The business upgraded its fleet with the newbuild additions of the Deepwater Pontus and Deepwater Poseidon, both of which are backed by 10-year contracts.
Through the acquisition of Songa Offshore, it is adding seven semisubmersibles to its fleet, including four harsh environment high-specification floaters.
Transocean divested its jack-up fleet and retired another nine assets, including five older, less competitive ultra-deepwater rigs.
Mr Thigpen said: “As we enter 2018, our ongoing balance sheet management has provided us the means to continue carrying out our strategic objectives, while extending our liquidity runway.
“We are encouraged by the upward momentum we continue to see in oil prices, and the resulting increase in demand for our assets and services.
“In the harsh environment market, we are experiencing strong demand for high-specification semisubmersibles, resulting in a meaningful year-over-year improvement in dayrates.
“While demand in ultra-deepwater is not as strong, we are encouraged to see customers seeking multi-year fixtures for assets in various basins around the world.”
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