Cal Dive International Inc (CDVIQ)

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Cal Dive Reports Fourth Quarter and Year End 2008 Results





Cal Dive International, Inc. (NYSE:DVR) reported 2008 annual net income of $109.5 million, or $1.05 per diluted share compared to $105.6 million and $1.24 per diluted share for the same period of 2007. The increase in net income is primarily due to the profits generated by assets acquired from Horizon Offshore in December 2007. The increase was partially offset by lower vessel utilization as a result of the harsh weather conditions in the Gulf of Mexico that extended into May of 2008.


Cal Dive also reported fourth quarter 2008 net income of $46.1 million, or $.44 per diluted share compared to $26.4 million and $.30 per diluted share for the same period of 2007. The increase in net income is due to the profit contributions from acquired assets and increased demand for inspection and repair work due to the impact of hurricanes Gustav and Ike.


Quinn Hébert, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cal Dive, stated “We finished the year strong with record third and fourth quarter financial results. We had solid utilization across the fleet during good weather months and experienced higher than expected utilization in the fourth quarter as a result of hurricanes Gustav and Ike. While those were positive drivers this year, our biggest success has been the integrated projects we’ve executed utilizing various combinations of construction barges and diving services to meet our customers’ needs on both new construction and salvage projects. The integration of our December 2007 Horizon Offshore acquisition has gone well, as reflected in our financial results.


Looking ahead, based on the macroeconomic drivers for our industry, including reduced global demand for hydrocarbons and lower oil and natural gas prices, we expect 2009 to be a challenging year as our customers reduce capital spending, particularly on new construction projects. At the same time we expect to continue to perform repair and salvage projects on damaged infrastructure following the 2008 hurricanes which will partially offset expected declines in new construction projects. We have a disciplined cost structure at Cal Dive and we are well positioned to operate our business through this cycle just as we have during past market downturns. As we are expecting reduced offshore activity levels in 2009, we will focus on tightly controlling operating costs, conservatively managing our capital dollars and executing offshore projects successfully.”