First POS-GRIP Wellhead Installed for Gazprom

 Plexus Holdings PLC / Index: AIM / Epic: POS / Sector: Oil Equipment & Services

Plexus Holdings PLC ('Plexus' or 'the Company')

Russian Licensee Successfully Installs First POS-GRIP® Exploration Wellhead for Gazprom

Highlights

·    First jack-up exploration wellhead successfully installed as part of the inaugural contract for POS-GRIP rental wellhead equipment secured by Russian licensing partner Gusar with global energy giant Gazprom

·    Part of first year of a five-year jack-up gas exploration drilling programme which provides a licence royalty revenue stream for Plexus under existing Gusar Licence Agreement

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, is pleased to announce that its Russian licensee LLC Gusar ('Gusar'), has successfully installed the first wellhead for Gazprom as part of the previously announced contract to supply POS-GRIP rental wellhead gas exploration equipment to OAO Gazprom ('Gazprom'), the global energy giant (see announcement of 4 March 2019 for further details.)

The wellhead installation marks the beginning of Gusar's contracted work with Gazprom for the first year of an up to five-year jack-up gas exploration drilling programme on the Kara Sea Shelf at shallow water depths of up to 150 metres.

The successful deployment of Plexus' equipment represents an important milestone towards establishing Plexus' safest and best-in-class POS-GRIP equipment in Russia and the CIS, one of the top three hydrocarbon producers in the world with significant gas reserves.

Plexus' CEO Ben Van Bilderbeek said: "The deployment of this first wellhead avails Gazprom of the many technical advantages of POS-GRIP technology.  We are pleased that such a major global operator, after considering the available alternatives, has made the choice in favour of POS-GRIP technology for working in the Arctic conditions.  It was for the same reasons that the likes of BP, Centrica, ConocoPhillips, eni, Royal Dutch Shell, Total and all those on the long list of operators that have used our proprietary POS-GRIP technology favoured POS-GRIP equipment, often in their most complex drilling programmes around the world. We will now be working closely with our partner Gusar to secure additional contracts for our POS-GRIP wellheads as we look to build another income stream for Plexus to complement those generated by our growing family of POS-GRIP products serving other areas of the energy industry, such as surface production."

Gusar's General Director Alexander Beryozkin said, "We are pleased to start our relationship with Gazprom as a local supplier of POS-GRIP technology.  We look forward to continue our efforts to deliver technology of the highest standard to the Russian market."

Further Information

Following the completion of the sale of its wellhead exploration equipment and services business for Jack-up applications (the 'Jack-up Business') to TFMC, Plexus retained the right to pursue jack-up exploration related business in Russia and the CIS via the Gusar Licence Agreement. Please see the announcement of 26 January 2016 for further information on the Licence Agreement, which grants Gusar and Konar the right to manufacture and rent Plexus' proprietary jack-up exploration equipment within the Russian Federation and the other CIS states.

**ENDS**

For further information please visit www.posgrip.com or contact:

NOTES:

AIM-traded oil and gas engineering services company Plexus (AIM: POS) is an IP led company that has developed a range of products and applications based on its patent-protected POS-GRIP friction-grip technology.  Having proved the superior qualities of POS-GRIP within the jack-up wellhead exploration market through the sale of this business to FMC Technologies Limited, a subsidiary of TechnipFMC (Paris:FTI, NYSE:FTI) (jointly "TFMC"), in early 2018, the company is now focused on establishing its technology and equipment in other markets including surface production wellheads, subsea and de-commissioning. 

Its suite of ongoing products and applications include: "HG" wellheads, which combine POS-GRIP technology with gas tight metal sealing; the Python® subsea wellhead (a new standard for subsea wellheads - developed in a Joint Industry Project supported by Royal Dutch Shell, BG (now owned by Shell), Wintershall, Total, Maersk (now owned by Total), Tullow Oil, eni, Senergy (now Lloyds register), and Oil States Industries Inc); the POS-SET™ connector for the growing de-commissioning and abandonment market; and Tersus-PCT, an innovative HP/HT tie back connector product.  Importantly, the company also has a collaboration agreement with TFMC, which provides a platform to further develop and commercialise these and other applications based on its POS-GRIP technology.