Caverton records mixed fortunes in Q1

Caverton Offshore Support Group Plc has a 26 per cent drop N4.4 billion in its revenue during the company’s first-quarter operations this year.

According to the organisation’s unaudited results for the period, operating costs however, went down by 25 per cent year-on-year.

In a statement released in Lagos at the weekend, the company’s operating profit was N538 million, while the net debt of N11.5 billion came down by six per cent from December 31, 2015.

According to the firm, there was a reduced demand for offshore support activities in the oil and gas sector but assured that it would continue to strengthen its efforts in diversifying its services to other sectors of the economy.

The company said as part of efforts to diversify, it has signed a new five-year contract with Lagos State Government to manage and operate a fleet of aircraft for the state government.

Caverton also disclosed that it is making a steady progress in the construction of its new Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility (MRO) in Ikeja, Lagos, adding that the for end of 2017 delivery date remained sacrosanct.

Commenting on the firm’s performance, the Group Chief Executive Officer, Bode Makanjuola, said: “Whilst 2015 was a tough year in the O&G (oil and gas) space, we are cautiously optimistic that the persisting oversupply in the industry is not sustainable; our view is that oil prices will stabilize by the second half of the year based on recent trends which will be positive for our operations within that space.”

“Furthermore, we are working tirelessly to broaden our service offerings through diversification into other sectors, as well as geographically into newer markets in a bid to boost our non–O&G revenues”.

He further stated that “in the quarter, we successfully signed a new five-year contract for helicopter management services which highlights our ongoing diversification efforts. We are also in the process of concluding terms of a new contract in our helicopter operations which we expect to have a significant impact on the scale of our business.”

While re-assuring that the firm would continue to sustain its well-known integrity and solid performance, Makanjuola said “overall, our strategy is to remain diligent in our operations by offering cost effective offshore support logistics services to a broad range of clients without compromising on our safety standards”.