Marine seismic acquisition provider SeaBird Exploration has terminated an agreement for the charter of the Munin Explorer seismic vessel.
The company has entered into a settlement agreement with Ordinat Shipping, the owners of Munin Explorer, for the termination of the charter party agreement and re-delivery of the vessel.
SeaBird said on Friday that the transaction is conditional on the fulfillment of certain preconditions and is expected to be approximately cash neutral to the company in 2018 and 2019.
The company is estimating that the transaction will save in excess of $2 million over the term of the contract, including the forgiveness of the $2.4 million charter hire payment due June 30, 020. The settlement agreement provides for a three year non-competition restriction whereby the vessel cannot compete in the company’s markets.
With the termination of the Munin charter agreement, the company has completed its historical fleet optimization effort.
The entire SeaBird fleet is now composed of vessels that are optimally configured and well positioned to address the company’s core markets and the evolving technology requirements, SeaBird explained.
The Munin Explorer was built in 1990 and re-built 2007 when it joined the SeaBird fleet. The vessel can operate worldwide as either 2D long offset or source vessel.