Semisub Ensco 8504 Sets Sail to Brunei

- Semisub Ensco 8504 Sets Sail to Brunei

Ensco has taken delivery of ENSCO 8504, the fifth of the seven ENSCO 8500 Series rigs constructed by Keppel FELS Limited in Singapore. After mobilizing to Brunei to complete deepwater sea trials and final outfitting, ENSCO 8504 will commence a previously announced drilling contract with Total E&P Deep Offshore Borneo B.V.

Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Rabun commented, "We are very pleased that Total has chosen ENSCO 8504 for its drilling program. Our 8500 Series rigs have performed extremely well for our customers and we are realizing significant benefits from the uniform design and standardization across the entire series."

Mr. Rabun added, "Brunei is an emerging deepwater basin and we look forward to entering this market and expanding our relationship with Total."

The proprietary design of the ENSCO 8500 Series was developed with extensive input from customers to address the drilling requirements for virtually every deepwater field around the world. The design includes a 35,000' nominal rated drilling depth, two million pounds of hoisting capacity, 8,000 tons of variable deck load and an open layout well suited for subsea completion activities. Improved visibility from the open deck configuration also enhances safety.

The uniform design of the ENSCO 8500 Series streamlines operational functionality, repairs, training, spare part requirements and maintenance, while also providing flexibility for customer specific enhancements. In particular, the 8500 Series may be modified to drill and complete wells in water depths up to 10,000'.

Two additional ENSCO 8500 Series rigs are under construction with deliveries scheduled for the first and second half of next year. Ensco has the world's newest ultra-deepwater drilling fleet comprised of drillships and semisubmersibles that operate in multiple markets around the globe, including Brazil, West Africa, U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Mediterranean and Asia.

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GDI Buys Ensco Jackup

- GDI Buys Ensco Jackup

Monday, June 27, 2011
Gulf Drilling International Ltd.

Gulf Drilling International has purchased from ENSCO Offshore the jackup drilling rig known as ENSCO 95 on June 22. The rig is a 3 legged Hitachi cantilevered drilling rig rated for 250 feet of water depth. GDI are most satisfied with the fine cooperation and support that ENSCO has extended to make this transaction possible. This is not GDI's first encounter with Ensco as the Al-Rayyan jack-up rig (formerly the ENSCO 55) was acquired from them back in 2005.

GDI will have a full Special Survey performed prior to placing the rig into service in order to obtain a new Class Certificate. This will necessitate the rig being put into shipyard for a 3 to 4 month period where major refurbishment will be done. The rig will be deployed for operating in Qatari waters on completion.

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Ensco Ups Revolving Credit Facilities to $1.9B

- Ensco Ups Revolving Credit Facilities to $1.9B

Tuesday, June 07, 2011
Ensco plc

Ensco has increased the commitments under its revolving credit facilities to a total of $1.9 billion. The commitment under a five-year credit facility is $1.45 billion. The commitment under a separate 364-day credit facility is $450 million.

Ensco also announced that it has increased the maximum amount of its unsecured commercial paper program from $700 million to $1.0 billion. The commercial paper program is backstopped by the revolving credit facilities.

Ensco completed its acquisition of Pride International, Inc. on 31 May 2011, as previously reported. The increased credit facilities and commercial paper program will facilitate the growth of the newly-combined company.

The notes to be offered by Ensco under the commercial paper program will not be registered under the Securities Act of 1933 and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements.

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Ensco Completes Pride Acquisition

- Ensco Completes Pride Acquisition

Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Ensco plc

Ensco announced the completion of its acquisition of Pride International after both companies received overwhelming shareholder approvals at special meetings held earlier today. The combination establishes Ensco as the world's second largest offshore drilling company and the clear leader in customer satisfaction.

Under the terms of the agreement, with exceptions for certain UK residents and dissenting stockholders, Pride International stockholders are receiving 0.4778 newly-issued shares of Ensco plus $15.60 in cash for each share of Pride International common stock. The shares of Ensco will continue to be listed and traded as American Depositary Shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol, ESV. Effective as of the close of trading today, Pride International common stock will cease trading.

Chairman and CEO Dan Rabun said, "Today is an important milestone in Ensco's history. Through this transaction, we have expanded our deepwater fleet with drillship assets, and now have a substantial presence in Brazil and West Africa – both strategic, high-growth markets. In addition, we have gained major new customers from around the world.”

Ensco's expanded rig fleet is made up of seven ultra-deepwater drillships, 13 dynamically positioned semisubmersibles, seven moored semisubmersibles and 49 premium jackups. The ultra-deepwater fleet is the newest in the industry and the active premium jackup fleet is the largest of any driller. Several technologically-advanced drillships, semisubmersibles and ultra-premium harsh environment jackups are under construction as part of Ensco's ongoing strategy to continually high-grade the fleet.

Mr. Rabun added, "We are the industry leader in customer satisfaction having collectively earned the top ranking in 14 of 16 separate categories in EnergyPoint's recent survey of customers in the global oilfield. This recognition, coupled with our enhanced rig fleet and expertise, will enable us to further capitalize on growth opportunities worldwide."

As contemplated under the merger agreement, David A.B. Brown and Francis S. Kalman have joined Ensco's Board of Directors effective today. Both are former directors of Pride International. Recently, Paul E. Rowsey III was appointed by Ensco's Board of Directors as the Lead Director.

As previously announced, Mr. Rabun will continue as Chairman, President and CEO of Ensco and James W. Swent will continue as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Others named to the executive management team include:

• William S. Chadwick, Jr. – Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
• J. Mark Burns – Senior Vice President, Western Hemisphere
• P. Carey Lowe – Senior Vice President, Eastern Hemisphere
• John Knowlton – Senior Vice President, Technical
• Kevin C. Robert – Senior Vice President, Marketing

The Company will be managed through five regional business units:

• North & South America (excluding Brazil)
• Brazil
• Europe & Mediterranean
• Middle East & Africa
• Asia & Pacific Rim

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Ensco Declares Quarterly Dividend

- Ensco Declares Quarterly Dividend

Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Ensco plc

Ensco has declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of US $0.35 per Class A ordinary share payable on June 24, 2011 to holders of Ensco's American depositary shares (ADS) as of the June 13, 2011 record date.

As previously reported, Ensco and Pride International each will hold special shareholder meetings on May 31, 2011 to vote on the merger of their companies, creating the world's second largest mobile offshore drilling fleet. The Ensco and Pride joint proxy statement/prospectus has been distributed to shareholders of both companies and the Ensco and Pride boards of directors have recommended that shareholders vote in favor of the merger.

As disclosed previously, votes for Ensco's special shareholder meeting on May 31, 2011 must be received by today, May 24, 2011, for the ADS depositary to properly record votes.

In preparation for the special shareholder meetings, Ensco and Pride have satisfied antitrust and securities regulatory requirements and Ensco has successfully completed a $2.5 billion senior notes offering, the net proceeds of which will facilitate the Pride acquisition.

If approved by the shareholders of Ensco and Pride at their respective May 31, 2011 special meetings, the merger is expected to close on the same day, at which point, with exceptions for certain U.K. residents, Pride stockholders will have the right to receive 0.4778 newly-issued shares of Ensco plus $15.60 in cash for each share of Pride common stock per the terms of the merger agreement.

Assuming the merger closes as planned on May 31, 2011, the US $0.35 regular quarterly cash dividend noted above also will be paid on the Ensco shares issued to the former Pride stockholders to holders of Ensco's American depositary shares (ADS) as of the June 13, 2011 record date.

At the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held today, the vote of a sufficient number of shares were cast to approve all proposals as recommended by the Board of Directors, including the non-binding advisory votes by a majority of shares to approve the compensation of our named executive officers and to hold non-binding advisory shareholder votes on the compensation of our named executive officers every year.

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Pride, Ensco Enter MOU in Merger Lawsuit

- Pride, Ensco Enter MOU in Merger Lawsuit

Friday, May 20, 2011
Pride International Inc

Pride announced it and the other named defendants in the previously disclosed stockholder class action lawsuits filed in the Delaware Court of Chancery related to the proposed merger with Ensco entered into a memorandum of understanding with the plaintiffs to settle the litigation. As part of the memorandum of understanding and subject to the approval of the Ensco board of directors, Pride and Ensco agreed to, among other things, enter into an amendment to the merger agreement.

The amendment would reduce the fee payable by Pride in connection with certain terminations of the merger agreement to $195 million from $260 million. The amendment also would shorten the "tail period" for certain transactions that could trigger a termination fee from 12 months to nine months after termination. Under the amendment, the $195 million fee would be payable by Pride if the agreement is terminated under specified circumstances, including (1) the decision by the Pride board of directors to accept a superior proposal, (2) an adverse change in the recommendation of the Pride board of directors or (3) a failure to obtain approval by Pride stockholders after public disclosure of an alternative business combination proposal before the stockholder meeting and either the Pride board of directors determines such proposal to be a superior proposal or, within nine months after termination of the merger agreement, Pride enters into a definitive agreement or consummates an alternative business combination proposal.

The amendment also would eliminate the "force the vote" provision applicable to Pride such that Pride would not be required to submit the adoption of the merger agreement to its stockholders if the Pride board of directors made an adverse recommendation change.

Pursuant to the memorandum of understanding, Pride has also agreed to make certain additional disclosures related to the proposed merger in an SEC filing.

The memorandum of understanding also provides, among other things, that the parties will seek to enter into a stipulation of settlement which provides for the release of certain claims held by such class. The stipulation of the settlement will be subject to customary conditions, including court approval. There can be no assurance that the parties will ultimately enter into a stipulation of settlement that receives court approval. The memorandum of understanding is also subject to the approval of the Ensco board of directors.

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Ensco Sees Decrease in 1Q11 Profits

Ensco Sees Decrease in 1Q11 Profits

Thursday, April 21, 2011
Ensco plc

Ensco reported diluted earnings per share from continuing operations of $0.45 for first quarter 2011, compared to $1.12 per share in first quarter 2010. There were no discontinued operations in first quarter 2011. Earnings from discontinued operations in first quarter 2010 were $0.21 per share that included a $34 million pre-tax gain from the sale of two jackup rigs. Diluted earnings per share were $0.45 in first quarter 2011, compared to $1.33 per share in first quarter 2010.

Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Rabun stated, "Our planned acquisition of Pride International is on track and we look forward to realizing the benefits of the combination for customers, employees and shareholders. We successfully completed our debt offering to fund the cash portion of the acquisition and have commenced integration planning to ensure a smooth transition."

Mr. Rabun added, "During the quarter we were honored to be ranked first among offshore drilling contractors in total customer satisfaction by EnergyPoint Research, an independent research firm that measures customer satisfaction in the global oilfield. We earned top scores in eleven separate categories. This recognition validates the commitment of our employees who serve our customers around the world each and every day."

Chief Operating Officer Bill Chadwick commented, "Ensco has a long-established strategy of high-grading our fleet by investing in new equipment. During the first quarter, we ordered two ultra-premium harsh environment jackups and secured options for two additional rigs of the same design with similar terms. The new jackup rigs will be capable of operating in water depths up to 400' and their unique design will significantly increase the area of operability in the Central North Sea and other harsh environment regions."

Mr. Chadwick added, "ENSCO 8503 successfully commenced drilling operations in French Guiana with Tullow under a sublet agreement and we contracted ENSCO 7500 with Petrobras in Brazil. Our rig crews in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico are performing extremely well and ENSCO 8501 has commenced operations under the first post-moratoria new deepwater well permit approved by regulators."

Revenues in first quarter 2011 were $362 million, compared to $449 million a year ago. Jackup segment revenues decreased $55 million and deepwater segment revenues declined $32 million.

Total operating expenses in first quarter 2011 increased 10% to $281 million, from $255 million last year. Contract drilling expense grew 5%. Depreciation expense rose by 15% driven by growth in the deepwater segment. General and administrative expense was $30 million, compared to $21 million in first quarter 2010, primarily due to increases in professional fees related to the Pride International acquisition.

Segment Highlights

Deepwater

Deepwater segment revenues were $98 million in first quarter 2011, down from $130 million a year ago. Revenue for ENSCO 7500 declined year to year since the rig was in a shipyard during first quarter 2011, but operated during first quarter 2010. This revenue decline was partially offset by the addition of new ultra-deepwater rigs to the fleet. In first quarter 2011, the average day rate was $304,000 and utilization was 77%, down from $411,000 and 99%, respectively, a year ago.

Contract drilling expense was $41 million in first quarter 2011, down from $45 million in first quarter 2010. The decrease was primarily due to lower expenses for ENSCO 7500 while in the shipyard, offset in part by the addition of ENSCO 8502 and ENSCO 8503 to the fleet.

Total Jackup Segments

Revenues from the jackup fleet totaled $263 million in first quarter 2011, down from $318 million a year ago. The decline was primarily due to a seven percentage point decrease in utilization to 72% and a $15,000 decline in the average day rate to $97,000. Contract drilling expense increased 10% year to year, mostly due to the acquisition of ENSCO 109 in July 2010.

Total Secures Ensco Semisub for Drilling Offshore Brunei

Total Secures Ensco Semisub for Drilling Offshore Brunei

Thursday, April 21, 2011
Ensco plc

Ensco has entered into a drilling contract for ENSCO 8504 with TOTAL E&P Deep Offshore Borneo B.V. Delivery from the shipyard in Singapore is planned for the end of July 2011 and the contract commencement will follow sea trials and mobilization to Brunei.

Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Rabun commented, "We are very pleased that TOTAL has chosen ENSCO 8504 for its drilling program. Our ENSCO 108 jackup drilling rig currently is working for TOTAL in Brunei and we appreciate the opportunity to expand our relationship with our latest 8500 Series rig. Brunei is an emerging deepwater basin and we look forward to entering this market with one of our deepwater rigs for the first time."

The initial contract term is for drilling three exploration wells for a minimum of 180 days with a base day rate of $423,500. TOTAL may extend the term by exercising up to four options. The first two options may be exercised to complete up to three additional wells at the same day rate. The third and fourth options may be exercised to complete up to six additional wells at an escalated day rate. The fee for rig mobilization from Singapore to Brunei is $3.5 million.

When ENSCO 8504 commences operations later this year, it will become the sixth ultra-deepwater rig in the active fleet. Ensco's other deepwater rigs are contracted in Brazil, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and French Guiana. Two additional ENSCO 8500 Series® rigs are under construction with deliveries scheduled in the first and second half of next year.