Swiber Holdings Limited of Singapore and CUEL Limited ("CUEL") of Thailand, signed a Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") which will allow both companies to jointly pursue offshore EPCIC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation and Commissioning) projects in the Asia Pacific region. Swiber is a niche service provider to the Offshore Oil and Gas industry offering a wide and integrated range of offshore EPCIC, marine support and offshore drilling services across the Asia Pacific and the Middle East. CUEL is one of the regions foremost offshore EPC fabrication contractors having executed full EPC and EPCIC contracts primarily for operations within the Gulf of Thailand.

The MOU will strategically combine the competitive advantages of Swiber and CUEL to offer existing and future customers with a consolidated source of expertise to provide turnkey solutions to the regional offshore Oil and Gas industry. Swiber and CUEL expect to enhance revenue and earnings growth by cross-offering products and services between the two organizations. Both parties also expect synergies to arise which will allow the two organizations to combine resources, skill sets and market contacts to explore opportunities in the offshore EPCIC sector in the Asia Pacific region.

"This is an event where the result is significantly greater than the sum of the parts," said Mr Raymond Goh, Swiber's Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Swiber's association with a premier partner such as CUEL will bring great value for our shareholders and deliver outstanding benefits to our clients. We believe that our long-standing relationship with CUEL will generate strategic and economic benefits to Swiber through increased scope, tangible synergies and expansion into new geographic markets."

Stressing the importance of the Asia Pacific region to Swiber's continued growth and profitability, Mr Goh, added, "The size, scope and importance of the Asia Pacific markets cannot be overstated. The region has been the backbone of Swiber's growth since our inception. We are continually appraising opportunities in the area and have already identified a number of prospects. We see an exciting future and we look forward to working with CUEL to develop these markets."