Operating profits of offshore rig operators to surge by 30-35 per cent in 2025-26: Crisil

New Delhi:  Indian offshore rig operators will see their operating profits surge 30-35 per cent in the next financial year, after a 25-30 per growth in the current fiscal year, according to a Crisil Ratings report released on Tuesday.

“This increase will be on the back of continued renewal of rig contracts at more than double their existing day rates for expiring contracts bagged 3-4 years back on sustained demand amid a muted rise in global rig supply,” the report said.

The average day rates are expected to improve to around $56,000 this fiscal and to $67,000 next fiscal, 1.5-1.7 times higher than the average day rates witnessed over fiscal 2021-2024 and thus drive sharp improvement in operating profits, it observes.

This will help strengthen the debt metrics and credit profiles of rig operators in the absence of any significant investment towards new rig purchases, the report further stated.

The Crisil Ratings study is based on domestic jack-up rig operators accounting for around 50 per cent of the domestic supply.

The report also highlights that the global supply of rigs will continue to remain muted given the lack of interest by rig operators in placing new rig orders owing to long payback periods and limited long-term revenue visibility. This is because demand for rigs is tightly linked to offshore exploration and production activities which in turn depend upon the medium-term outlook of crude oil demand as well as its price.

Global demand for crude oil is expected to remain muted growing at less than 1 per cent in 2025, its prices are also likely to remain range-bound at around $75 per barrel. Nonetheless, these crude oil prices will continue to be remunerative enough for offshore exploration and production activities resulting in steady demand for existing offshore rigs in the near term. This has also resulted in the order book for new rigs coming down gradually to record low levels of 3 per cent of existing supply from the peak of 25 per cent in fiscal 2015.

According to the report, these demand-supply dynamics would ensure healthy capacity utilisation for rigs and continue to prevent any steep decline in rig charter rates in the near to medium term.

Besides, the demand for offshore rigs in India is steadier, as 88 per cent of the country’s crude oil requirement is met by imports and there is a continuous push for more domestic production. Plus, the domestic day rates follow global trends as rigs are movable and can be deployed globally. These factors augur well for domestic rig operators, the report added.

–IANS