Petrofac reports $6.4bn order backlog; warns of engineering hit

Oilfield services firm Petrofac said its group order backlog was $6.4bn at the end of May as it warned of a significant impact on its engineering division from the coronavirus pandemic.

The backlog was down $1bn from the end of December. Petrofac said it expected revenue at its engineering and construction division was expected to fall to around $1.6bn, driven by pandemic-related project delays, but gave no comparative figure.

Petrofac said it was on track to reduce overhead and project support costs by at least $125m in 2020 and up to $200m in 2021. Full year revenue and margin guidance remained suspended.

Suspension of the final 2019 dividend payment and a 40% reduction in capital investment would conserve an incremental $145m of cash flow in the year, the company said on Wednesday.

Net debt was around $139m at May 31, compared with a net cash position of $15m at the end of 2019, reflecting the anticipated reversal of temporary favourable working capital movements at the end of last year, disposal proceeds, the suspension of the 2019 final dividend and a reduction in capital expenditure.

Petrofac said it had $1.2bn in liquidity after the repayment and retirement of $75m of facilities during the period. At the beginning of June, the group retired a further $200m tranche of its $1.2bn revolving credit facility as planned.

Source: ShareCast

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