Plexus Holdings PLC / Index: AIM / Epic: POS / Sector: Oil equipment & services
16 October 2013
Plexus Holdings PLC ('Plexus' or 'the Company')
Further Contract Win with BG Egypt for POS-GRIP Wellhead Supply
Plexus Holdings PLC, the AIM quoted oil and gas engineering services business and owner of the proprietary POS-GRIP® friction-grip method of wellhead engineering, known for its safety, time and cost saving capabilities, announces it has been awarded a contract with BG International Egypt, a division of BG Group plc ('BG Group'), a leading oil and gas operator in the global energy market, for the supply of its POS-GRIP wellhead technology (10,000 psi) and services for oil drilling activities offshore Egypt. The contract is worth up to £350,000 with revenues expected to commence in the second quarter of Plexus' 2014 financial year.
This contract win extends Plexus' working relationship with BG Group, having previously worked together in Egypt and in the North Sea. Additionally, the Board believes this agreement further strengthens Plexus' presence and reputation in the region having worked with GDF SUEZ Egypt, and Shell Egypt in the country previously.
Plexus' CEO Ben Van Bilderbeek said, "This marks a significant win for Plexus as our POS-GRIP wellhead system was chosen for this work, highlighting firstly, the safety, reliability and performance of our POS-GRIP wellhead systems, which have been supplied to over 300 wells worldwide.
"This is a truly exciting time in our Company's development as we continue to win contracts for the supply of our niche POS-GRIP wellhead exploration rental systems for both low and high pressure oil and gas activities, and in turn increase our global reach and reputation. In addition, we are making great strides with our joint industry partner ('JIP') project where we are working alongside six major oil and gas companies to develop and commercialise a new 'HGSS' and safer subsea wellhead, utilising Plexus' patented POS-GRIP technology. The JIP is progressing well and has completed the design process and we are now in the process of building test fixtures. We believe our entry into the subsea market will be a major milestone for the Company as we position Plexus over the long term as the best in class wellhead supplier across oil and gas exploration, both for surface and subsea applications."
**ENDS**
For further information please visit www.posgrip.com or contact:
Ben van Bilderbeek |
Plexus Holdings PLC |
Tel: 020 7795 6890 |
Graham Stevens |
Plexus Holdings PLC |
Tel: 020 7795 6890 |
Jon Fitzpatrick |
Cenkos Securities PLC |
Tel: 020 7397 8900 |
Ken Fleming |
Cenkos Securities PLC |
Tel: 0131 220 6939 |
Felicity Edwards |
St Brides Media & Finance Ltd |
Tel: 020 7236 1177 |
Frank Buhagiar |
St Brides Media & Finance Ltd |
Tel: 020 7236 1177 |
Notes to editors:
Plexus Holdings PLC, which began trading on AIM in December 2005, is an oil and gas engineering and services business, which supplies wellhead and mudline suspension equipment for exploration and production applications. Based in Aberdeen, with offices in London, Cairo, Kuala Lumpur and a presence in Houston, Texas, it has developed and patented a friction-grip method of engineering for oil and gas field wellheads and connectors, POS-GRIP®, which involves deforming one tubular member against another to effect gripping and sealing.
The Company plans to accelerate the roll out of POS-GRIP wellhead equipment as a superior alternative to current technology and for it to become the future industry standard for wellhead design. In particular, the technology has advantages in High Pressure/High Temperature (HP/HT) and Extreme HP/HT (X-HP/HT) oil and gas environments, for which there is growing global demand and where Plexus is being increasingly recognised as the supplier of choice. Importantly, the Company is focussed on extending its proprietary technology into an increasing number of subsea applications. In line with this, in March 2011 the Company launched an initiative to develop a new subsea wellhead design, HGSS™, utilising its friction-grip technology in collaboration with key oil and gas operators and service companies. Royal Dutch Shell, Wintershall, Maersk, Tullow Oil, ENI, Oil States Industries Inc., TOTAL and the UK entity of the world's largest offshore drilling company have joined the initiative to date. The HGSS subsea wellhead design will include a combination of key features never before seen in a subsea wellhead which include being rated to 15,000 psi, 4,000,000 pounds of 'instant' casing lockdown capacity, annulus pressure monitoring and access for 'bleed off' capability to address sustained casing pressure ('SCP') issues which are recognised by the API as a serious industry problem, and rigid metal annular seal technology qualified to match the performance of premium casing. The design process has now been completed, and prototype testing is due for completion mid 2014.
To date, POS-GRIP wellhead systems have been used or selected to be used in over 250 oil and gas wells by international companies including Apache Energy Australia, BHP Billiton, BG International, Bowleven plc, BP, Brunei Shell Petroleum, Cairn Energy, Centrica, ConocoPhillips, Dana Petroleum, Dubai Petroleum, GDF SUEZ, Global Santa Fe, Maersk, Niko Resources, Petro-Canada Trinidad & Tobago, Red Sea Petroleum Operating Company, Repsol, RWE, Senergy Limited, Shell Egypt, StatoilHydro, Silverstone Energy, Talisman Energy, Tullow Oil, and Wintershall.
