Swiss rig owner Transocean dipped into the red with its losses in the fourth quarter of 2020, as the company’s revenues also shrank.

Transocean posted a net loss of $37 million for the three months to 31 December, down from $359 million net profit in the third quarter.

The recent quarter benefitted from net favorable items of $172 million, including $137 million gain on the retirement of debt, $37 million related to discrete tax items and partially offset by $2 million in unfavorable items.

Considering these one-off items, Transocean posted an adjusted net loss of $209 million for the fourth quarter, compared to an adjusted net loss of $69 million in previous quarter.

The losses came as the company's revenues shrank by $83 million to $690 million, due primarily to reduced activities for two idle rigs, one rig that demobilized from Canada to Norway, and two rigs undertaking out-of-service maintenance in Brazil.

The company realized a non-cash revenue reduction of $57 million in the third and fourth quarters related to the Songa and Ocean Rig acquisitions.

“In the face of unprecedented challenges, we generated revenue efficiency of 97%, clearly demonstrating our commitment to delivering reliable and efficient operations for our customers, while keeping personnel on our rigs healthy and safe," Transocean chief executive Jeremy Thigpen said.

“As a direct result of our strong performance in 2020, we generated over $1 billion in EBITDA, which, when combined with the multiple financing transactions consummated throughout the year, further bolstered our liquidity position.

"This liquidity, coupled with our industry-leading $7.8 billion backlog, provides us the financial stability to continue to invest in our people, the maintenance of our assets, and the development and deployment of new technologies that will further differentiate us in the eyes of our customers and shareholders.”

For the full year, Transocean posted a net loss of $ 567 million, on revenues of $ 3.2 billion, versus a loss in 2019 of $1.26 billion, on revenues of $3.09 billion.

Considering one-off gains and losses, Transocean’s underlying net loss for 2020 totalled $466 million, versus an underlying net loss of $887 million in 2019.

Finance

Transocean posts fourth quarter loss