Business
AKITA Drilling Ltd. Announces Results
AKITA Drilling Ltd. Announces Results.
About this update from Akita Drilling Ltd. Class A
[{"type":"text","content":"\n\n\n\n\nCALGARY, Oct. 26 /CNW/ - AKITA Drilling Ltd. announced third quarter\nearnings and funds flow today. AKITA Drilling Ltd.'s net earnings for the nine\nmonths ended September 30, 2006 were $25,400,000 or $1.37 per share on revenue\nof $132,980,000. Comparative figures for 2005 were $19,688,000 or $1.06 per\nshare of net earnings on revenue of $115,469,000. Funds flow from operations\nfor the period was $35,666,000 compared to $29,834,000 in 2005.\nEarnings for the three months ended September 30, 2006 were $6,850,000\n($0.37 per share) on revenue of $38,856,000 compared with $7,108,000 \n($0.38 per share) on revenue of $40,740,000 in 2005. Funds flow from\noperations for the quarter ended September 30, 2006 was $10,389,000 compared\nto $10,319,000 in the corresponding quarter in 2005.\n\n>\n\nDuring the third quarter, AKITA commissioned its latest rig. The Company\nanticipates redeploying this rig from its current location in Alberta into\nAlaska later this year where it is scheduled to operate on a term contract for\none of AKITA's joint ventures. The projected timetable for completion of the\nremaining three rigs currently under construction has been delayed as a result\nof unexpected delays associated with the delivery of certain key components of\nthe rigs. However, management still anticipates the receipt of its shallow\ncapacity drilling rig during the fourth quarter of 2006 and also anticipates\ncompletion of the remaining two heavy oil pad drilling rigs by mid-2007.\nDemand for shallow drilling rigs, and to a lesser degree deep drilling\nrigs, tapered off during the third quarter as a result of current weakness in\nnatural gas prices. Management anticipates that activity levels for these\ntypes of rigs will increase with the onset of winter drilling, but may once\nagain become vulnerable to weaker demand by late winter or spring unless\nnatural gas prices strengthen significantly. Demand for medium capacity rigs\nand for heavy oil pad drilling rigs is largely influenced by oil prices and\ncontinues to remain strong. Demand for drilling rigs in the Canadian North\nappears to be less than in previous years and may be constrained by the lack\nof positive developments on the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline.\nFinancial results for the third quarter and on a year-to-date basis are\nas follows:\n\n\n>\n\n%SEDAR: 00002868E\n\n...