EARNINGS WATCH- Maridive, the Cairo-headquartered provider of offshore marine and oil support services, released yesterday further details (pdf) of its 1H2018 financial and operational performance, including a 12% y-o-y increase in revenues to USD 113 mn “driven by a recovery in the industry as oil prices start to stabilize at a new norm.” This helped drive 20% expansion in EBITDA and helped net profit rise 55% to USD 17 mn in the first half, the company said, citing “successful implementation of cost cutting measures.” Among the highlights:

• The group noted having won new contracts in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Egypt and the acquisition of two new vessels that are now contracted to Eni’s Zohr supergiant field.
• Maridive re-opened rep offices in Tunisia, Nigeria and Venezuela in a bid to grow its book of global business.
• It has entered the water treatment sector with the award of two contracts for desalination plants as it looks to transform “from a services provider to an EPC player offering turnkey solutions.”

Outlook: Maridive Chairman Tarek Nadim noted that “the industry seems to have bottomed out with only upside expected in the future. The offshore oil and gas industry has been gradually showing signs of improvement, with several of our clients undertaking new concessions and resuming E&P spending.”