Aker Solutions invests $100m in new drilling equipment facility in Brazil

22 juni 2012 22 June 2012 - Aker Solutions is building a new multi-purpose service site for its drilling equipment business in Brazil, significantly expanding its capacity to serve the country's fast-growing drilling market. The $100 million development will also include substantial production, assembly and testing capacity, to provide local content to support the country's large drilling rig- building programme. The 335 000m2 facility in Macaé on Brazil's east coast is about 8 times bigger than Aker Solutions' current facility in nearby Rio das Ostras, reflecting expected growth in the company's activities in the country. "Our investments in Brazil demonstrate our ambitions to grow in one of the most exciting offshore markets in the world, and our commitment to contribute to and develop the country's oil and gas industry. Aker Solutions' commitment to local content in Brazil is second to none," says Luis Antonio Araujo, Regional President for Aker Solutions in Brazil. The new Macaé facility will host full drilling riser production and maintenance services. This includes about 20 000 m2 of indoor mechanical workshop space for riser and topside equipment, with full crane and testing capabilities. The total investment is about $100m. The site will have capacity for about 700 employees. Well positioned The site will also include a state-of-the-art training centre with capacity for up to four of Aker Solutions' market-leading drilling simulators. The company today has two state-of-the-art dome training simulators in operation, offering customers training support to improve the safety and efficiency of drilling operations. "We are well positioned to take advantage of the activity in Brazil's oil and gas industry. The new site will enable us to produce and assemble drilling equipment in Brazil, as well as conduct service and performance optimisation work on a steadily growing fleet of deepwater units with Aker Solutions equipment on board," says Gustavo Gonçalves, head of Aker Solutions' drilling technologies business in Brazil. Local support Aker Solutions has supported drilling operators locally with equipment, systems and services since the 1990s. Today, more than 35 drills ships and rigs operate in Brazilian waters, using drilling equipment from Aker Solutions. Work to preparing the land has already started and the site is scheduled to be fully operational in early 2014. The site in Macaé, 180 km northeast of Rio de Janeiro, will be Aker Solutions' fourth facility in Brazil, in addition to sites in Rio das Ostras, Curitiba and Rio de Janeiro. The Rio das Ostras site, which currently hosts Aker Solutions drilling riser production and drilling lifecycle services and subsea lifecycle services, will be developed into a full service subsea product base. ENDS For further information, please contact: Media: Ivar Simensen, Vice President Communications, Aker Solutions. Tel: +1 713 272 4109, Mob: +47 46 40 23 17, E-mail: ivar.simensen@akersolutions.com Endre Johansen, Vice President Communications, Aker Solutions. Tel: +47 22 94 58 91, Mob: +47 416 10 605, E-mail: endre.johansen@akersolutions.com Investor relations: Lasse Torkildsen, SVP Investor Relations, Aker Solutions. Tel: +47 67 51 30 39, Mob: +47 911 37 194, E-mail: lasse.torkildsen@akersolutions.com Suppliers: For further information about sourcing and potential subcontracts for this project, please visit www.akersolutions.com/suppliers Career opportunities: Visit http://www.akersolutions.com/careers Aker Solutions provides oilfield products, systems and services for customers in the oil and gas industry world-wide. The company's knowledge and technologies span from reservoir to production and through the life of a field. Aker Solutions brings together engineering and technologies for oil and gas drilling, field development and production. The company employs approximately 25 000 people in more than 30 countries. They apply the knowledge and create and use technologies that deliver their customers' solutions. Aker Solutions ASA is the parent company in the group, which consists of a number of separate legal entities. Aker Solutions is used as the common brand and trademark for most of these entities. In 2011 Aker Solutions had aggregated annual revenues of approximately NOK 36.5 billion. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. This press release may include forward-looking information or statements and is subject to our disclaimer, see www.akersolutions.com. This information is subject of the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. This announcement is distributed by Thomson Reuters on behalf of Thomson Reuters clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Aker Solutions ASA via Thomson Reuters ONE [HUG#1621445]