Swissco books higher Q3 profit but revenue falls

In the quarter ended 30 September 2015, Singapore-listed Swissco reported a profit of $11.18m, an increase of 38.7% from the gain of $8.06m in the same period of last year.

The profit was boosted by other gains of $6.07m compared to a gain of just $220,000 in the previous corresponding period.

Third quarter revenue declined by 63% year-on-year to $10.43m due mainly to lower contributions from the OSV business. The business saw lower average day rates and lower utilisation rates, in particular spot charter activities, during the period.

The company believes that the global oil and gas industry continues to face a challenging time and the recovery is expected to be slow. The weak oil prices and oversupply of offshore rigs is likely to further delay the recovery process.

“We expect the oil prices to remain volatile and this will affect oil and gas companies through the reduction in day rates,” said Tan Fuh Gih, executive director of Swissco.

“We will continue to manage our risks and exposures and at the same time, seek new opportunities to diversify the group’s fleet geographically,” he said.

Tan added that the group is stepping up its marketing activities and exploring new geographical markets including the Middle East, Africa and India.