MAXI ORDER FOR 4 VESSELS FOR OFFSHORE INDUSTRY

Fincantieri, through its subsidiary VARD - a Norwegian company listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange and world leader in the design and construction of offshore support vessels for oil & gas extraction and production - has secured a prestigious order from the DOF Subsea-Technip joint ventures to build four Pipe Lay Support Vessels (PLSVs).
The contract, worth a total of approximately USD 1.1 million (NOK 6.5 billion) is the largest in VARD's history and one of the largest of its kind in this particular sector.

The four vessels will be constructed by the VARD group's shipbuilding network. Two of the vessels (Vard 3 05 design: length 151 m, beam 30 m, and pipe-lay support capability up to 650 tons), which will be delivered in 2Q 2016 and 3Q 2016 respectively, will be built at the Tulcea yard in Romania but outfitted at the Søviknes yard in Norway. The other two vessels (Vard 3 16 design: length 140 m, beam 28 m, pipe-lay support capability up to 340 tons) will be built and outfitted at the Promar yard in Brazil and delivered in 4Q 2016 and 2Q 2017 respectively.
This order reinforces VARD's position as a leading provider of large and complex vessels for this high-tech sector serving the offshore industry.

The design of the new ships has been developed by VARD in collaboration with DOF and Technip, while the pipe-laying equipment will be supplied by Huisman of Holland. DOF Subsea, a Norwegian group with a large and modern fleet of vessels, specializes in engineering and other services for the construction, repair and maintenance of subsea structures. Technip, a French multinational with 38,000 employees and a presence in 48 countries, is a world leader in the energy industry thanks to its fleet of specialized vessels for oil and gas pipeline installation and subsea construction.

Following the announcement, Fincantieri CEO Giuseppe Bono, commented: "This record order is a source of great satisfaction and pride. In fact, the offshore industry, on which, also thanks to the support of our shareholders, we have decided to firmly direct our attention for diversification purposes, has confirmed its great potential and investment prospects." Bono concluded: "Even in Italy, thanks to the presence of a top shipbuilder like Fincantieri, of important global players in the oil & gas industry and a network of highly specialized small and medium-sized businesses, it would be possible to gainfully activate a cluster capable of competing on the international market, with benefits for the Italian economy, by increasing the value added of our industries and hence their margins, and by expanding the country's workforce with world-class skills."