August 8, 2021 – Hamilton, Bermuda
Northern Ocean Ltd. (“NOL” or the “Company”) with reference to the February 11, 2021 announcement, the Company has signed an amended settlement agreement with Seadrill Ltd and its subsidiaries (“Seadrill”).
The settlement closes all outstanding balances and claims between the companies, provides transition services for NOL rigs, and requires bareboat lease payments on the West Bollsta to become payable from Seadrill to NOL, starting August 10, 2021. The settlement is subject to several conditions, including obtaining approval by the bankruptcy court under Seadrill’s Chapter 11 protection in the US, before the bareboat lease payments will be made.
The West Mira is now idle in a yard near Bergen with PSW Technology AS and Captar Holdings Ltd providing various services, and the rig is expected to remain stacked in a condition to return to service efficiently when new employment is secured.
As set out in the First Quarter Report dated 28 May 2021, the Company is running out of liquidity and is therefore dependent on loans and/or equity issuances and/or restructuring its net current liabilities to finance its working capital and debt service obligations, which raises substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.
The Company continues to assess its overall financial condition and limit expenditures. Several alternatives to address the Company´s liquidity situation are being explored in continued dialogue with the Company´s key stakeholders.
Additional information about the Company can be found at: www.northernocean.no
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Forward Looking Statements
Matters discussed in this release may contain certain forward-looking statements relating to the business, financial performance and results of the Company and/or the industry in which it operates, sometimes identified by the words “believes”, “expects”, “intends”, “plans”, “estimates” and similar expressions. The forward-looking statements contained in this release, including assumptions, opinions and views of the Company or cited from third-party sources, are solely opinions and forecasts which are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual events to differ materially from any anticipated development. The Company does not provide any assurance that that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors, nor does the Company accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the opinions expressed in the presentation or the actual occurrence of the forecasted developments. No obligations are assumed to update any forward-looking statements or to conform to these forward-looking statements to actual results.