North Sea driller Awilco stayed in the red in its first quarter results as the hunt for work continues for one of its two rigs.
The Aberdeen-headquartered firm posted a £1.7m pre-tax loss, which compares to a £16.3m profit in the same period in 2018.
Its WilPhoenix rig continued work with Shell at its Kingfisher location and has since signed a contract extension keeping it on site until late Q1 of next year.
However the WilHunter rig remained cold stacked in Invergordon.
Contract revenue was £7milllion, down from £43.7m in Q1 2018.
Awilco employs 25 permanent staff in Aberdeen plus three contractors, as well as 115 offshore staff.
The company said there has been a “brisk” level of enquiries and tenders in the UK sector for 2020 and expects to see a boost in activity as a result.
Meanwhile there remains a “strong” market in Norway for high-end semisubmersibles, Awilco said.
In March, Awilco announced a £325m order for a new build rig, which would be similar to another ordered the previous year.
The unit is being constructed in Singapore, with delivery expected in 2022.