Atwood Wins a Drilling Services Contract in Mediterranean

Atwood Oceanics, Inc. announced that one of its subsidiaries has been awarded a drilling services contract for the Atwood Advantage by a subsidiary of Noble Energy Inc. for a worldwide program commencing in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Atwood Advantage is a 12,000 foot water depth capable, dynamically positioned drillship currently under construction at Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) shipyard in South Korea. The agreement specifies an operating rate of approximately $584,000 per day and a firm duration of three years, exclusive of the mobilization period from DSME to the first drilling location.

The Atwood Advantage is scheduled to be delivered from the DSME shipyard in September 2013, after which it will mobilize for a period of approximately eighty days to its first location in the Eastern Mediterranean. This contract adds $639 million in revenue backlog, bringing Atwood's total revenue backlog to approximately $2.9 billion as of October 1, 2012.

Rob Saltiel, Atwood's President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are extremely pleased to be working with Noble Energy with the Atwood Advantage. Our companies have enjoyed a long and productive working relationship, and this agreement exemplifies the spirit of collaboration that exists between our companies. Atwood is committed to providing outstanding drilling service to Noble Energy with our state-of-the-art drillship, and we are proud to have been selected for this important drilling program."

Atwood Oceanics, Inc. is an international offshore drilling contractor engaged in the drilling and completion of exploratory and developmental oil and gas wells. The company currently owns 11 mobile offshore drilling units and is constructing two ultra-deepwater drillships and two high-specification jackups for deliveries in 2012, 2013 and 2014. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Atwood Oceanics, Inc. common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "ATW."