Brazilian Drilling Contractor Goes to Public Market in Norway

Brazilian deepwater drilling firm Ventura Offshore Holding has been listed for public trading at Euronext Growth in Oslo, Norway.

On March 8, 2024, Ventura Offshore Holding entered into a share purchase agreement (SPA) with Petroserv Marine regarding the acquisition of all outstanding shares in Universal Energy Resources.

Following the closing of the acquisition two months later, Ventura Offshore Energy acquired Petroserv Marine, which provides offshore drilling services to the oil and gas industry and has operated in the deepwater drilling industry for 25 years.

Ventura Offshore Holding owns and operates drillship DS Carolina, and a semisubmersible drilling rig, SSV Victoria. It also manages drillship Zonda and a semisubmersible drilling rig SSV Catarina.

Ahead of the listing, a directed share issue of $170 million and a bond issue of $130 million were carried out to finance the transaction.

“The public listing of Ventura Offshore is an important milestone in our 25-year history and will provide exciting opportunities for the company going forward. With the strong support of new shareholders, the existing Ventura Offshore management and I are excited to progress the Ventura Offshore organization into its next chapter

"We are excited to bring this company to the public market. It is a well-managed company with a strong asset base and a solid position in the Brazilian deepwater market. We have an excellent operational platform, and the listing gives us further flexibility to pursue various growth opportunities, primarily in the ultra-deepwater space,” said Guilherme Coelho, Ventura Offshore Chief Executive.