Keppel To Build $105M Jack-Up Bigfoot for ENSCO

Unlike the "Sasquatch" that was rumored to roam the Pacific Northwest for many years, even gaining fame with a cameo on the 1970s television adventure show "Six Million Dollar Man," a very real Bigfoot will be working for Ensco soon.

Ensco selected Keppel FELS' proprietary jackup (JU) design, the KFELS MOD V (B) class, as the basis for a new generation premium jackup rig.

The KFELS MOD V designs are developed by Offshore Technology Development (OTD), the R&D arm of Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M). The enhanced MOD V (B) design, modified to ENSCO spec, will be named Bigfoot.

"We believe, as drilling requirements become more stringent, and as fleet renewal becomes imperative, balance between capability and cost will be crucial. We are confident that the Bigfoot will optimize our philosophical criteria and are most pleased that Keppel FELS has again agreed to be our partner in this project," said Carl Thorne, Ensco's Chairman and CEO.

In an alliance agreement, Keppel FELS and Ensco will build, own and operate the Bigfoot design jack-up on a 75/25 basis respectively. Valued at $105 million, the rig will be completed by the first quarter of 2005. Ensco will have an option to purchase Keppel FELS' 75 percent interest in the rig prior to delivery, and for two years after delivery.

"We are happy that our valued customer, Ensco, has chosen us as their partner in this Bigfoot jackup rig which we believe has strong potential to be widely accepted by the industry to address significant replacement requirements of the existing aging fleet," said Choo Chiau Beng, Chairman & CEO of Keppel O&M. "This Bigfoot alliance arrangement also demonstrates our engineering and financial strength and flexibility in structuring win-win commercial deals in partnership with our customers, which is one of the keys to our success."

This alliance agreement is not expected to have any significant impact on the NTA or net earnings per KCL share for FY2003. This arrangement is similar to that of ENSCO 102, which is currently on charter offshore Sarawak.