Creditors are in the process of signing a deal to sell a drillship that had been Fred Olsen Energy’s crown jewel.
According to the Norwegian financial daily Finansavisen, the lenders are likely to book a substantial loss on the sale of the 51,400-gt Bolette Dolphin (built 2014).
The newspaper reports that creditors are close to landing a deal to sell the Hyundai Heavy Industries-built vessel to oil company Turkish Petroleum.
The sale is meant to cover part debt held by creditors Danske Bank, DNB, SEB, Swedbank and Strategic Value Partners.
TradeWinds' efforts to reach Turkish Petroleum to confirm the deal were not immediately successful.
The drillship belonged to rig company Fred Olsen Energy before the Bonheur subsidiary was renamed Dolphin Drilling amid restructuring efforts.
Finansavisen reported that a sale has been difficult to conclude in a crisis-ridden rig market.
But the sales process headed by Pareto is coming to an end. VesselsValue calculates that the drillship is worth $95m, which implies creditors are likely to face a total loss of $400m.
Fred Olsen Energy announced in 2018 that it was in negotiations to sell the Bolette Dolphin for $340m.
The potential buyer pulled out due to falling oil prices and uncertainties about the restructuring of the drilling company.
Noble and Diamond Offshore had made bids on the drillship.
The Bolette Dolphin has been laid up since the summer of 2018, when a four-year contract with Anadarko was terminated a year early.
