News

Drilling company Archer acquires 50% stake in Iceland Drilling

Drilling company Archer acquires 50% stake in Iceland Drilling Drilling Rig Odinn on location in Iceland, Iceland Drilling (source: Iceland Drilling)
Alexander Richter 8 Aug 2022

The owners of geothermal drilling company Iceland Drilling (Jardboranir) have sold a 50% stake in the company to international drilling and services company Archer.

The international drilling and service company Archer Ltd. has bought 50% of the shares in geothermal drilling company Iceland Drilling (Jardboranir hf.)for 8.25 million US dollars, equivalent to about ISK 1.13 billion.

The sellers of the bonds are SF III, which is a company in the operation of Stefnis hf. and other domestic shareholders. After the transaction, Jardboranir hf. equally owned by Archer and the investment company Kaldbaks ehf., a subsidiary of Icelandic fishing group Samherja hf. Jardboranir hf. has more than seventy years of experience in the field of geothermal drilling. The sale is subject to the approval of the Icelandic Competition Authority.

Archer has more than four decades of experience in the field of drilling, services to oil exploration companies and well research. The company has operations on 45 oil rigs on four continents and operates 81 mobile onshore rigs in South America.

Archer’s investment in Jardboranir hf. is intended to support the further growth of the company. Ninety people work at Jardboranir hf. today, but it is stated in the announcement that the company has drilled more than 300 geothermal wells in the last twenty years and more than 500 wells since 1970.

The company has extensive experience in drilling in challenging conditions in isolated areas, currently has operations in Iceland, the Azores and New Zealand. It has drilled pretty much all the wells for the geothermal industry and plants in Iceland. Find more news on Iceland Drilling over the  years here. In December 2021, we reported on a 5-year contract for Iceland Drilling for geothermal projects in New Zealand.

Drilling rig at Fiale, Djibouti (source: Helga Vala Jonsdottir, Iceland Drilling)

They plan to use their portable drills in geothermal projects 

Archer CEO Dag Skindlo says geothermal has a direct overlap and synergy with Archer’s core services.

“The geothermal market is part of the most important energy sources of the future and will grow significantly in the coming decades, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) and other experts in the sector. It is estimated that the annual number of geothermal wells drilled will increase from 200 to 700 by 2030. Furthermore, the increased focus on geothermal energy in Europe will drive growth and technological progress,” says Skindlo in an announcement.

Archer’s specialization is in the field of drills and borehole services, and he believes that the company can use its mobile drills in geothermal projects of the future and use Archer’s international connections to grow activities in the field of geothermal drilling.

“We look forward to continuing to develop and expand Jardboranir hf. together with the management of the company and our co-shareholder, Kaldbaki.”

Willing to put their weight on the scales to reduce carbon emissions

Sigurdur Sigurdsson, CEO of Jardboranir hf., says it is a great vote of confidence for the company to have Archer join the group of shareholders.

“We are pleased that Archer, with his extensive experience and success on an international level, intends to support us in the continued development and development of Jarðboran hf. Along with technological progress in the industry, we can jointly contribute to reducing carbon emissions. Archer’s experience and expertise will undoubtedly strengthen Jardboranir hf.,” so Sigurdur Sigurdsson in the announcement.

Source: Visir.is