Date: 16 January 2009

GC RIEBER SHIPPING - CONTRACTS UPDATE


GC Rieber Shipping and the subsea contractor Technocean, which is a subsidiary of GC Rieber Shipping, have entered into charter agreements for the offshore subsea vessels "Polar Prince" and "Polarbjørn" and supply of IMR services.
 
The charter agreement with the subsidiary Technocean for the vessel "Polar Prince" is extended until March 2009 with an option for further extension of up to 6 months. The vessel is in transit to Congo in West Africa, where Technocean has entered into an agreement with Total for delivery of IMR services.
 
Furthermore, a 3 month charter has been agreed with Petromarker for the vessel "Polarbjørn". The contract commences early April 2009 and includes an option for a further extension of 3 months. The vessel will operate in the spot-market until start-up of the contract with Petromarker.
 
The combined contract value for the fixed parts of the agreements is approximately NOK 80 million.  
 
-We are satisfied with the renewal of the order backlog for the part of our fleet that operates on short term contracts, and at the same time we are pleased to observe that Technocean now is awarded a contract from one of the large oil companies and thus become accepted as an international subsea contractor, says Sven Rong, CEO in GC Rieber Shipping.
 
 
For further information, please contact:
CEO Sven Rong, phone +47 55 60 68 18, or +47 90 55 49 52
CFO Hans Petter Klohs, phone +47 55 60 68 24, or +47 90 75 05 26
 
 
About GC Rieber Shipping:
GC Rieber Shipping's business within offshore/shipping includes ownership in specialized vessels, high quality marine ship management, project development and industrial portfolio management within the segments offshore subsea, ice research and support, as well as marine seismic. The group has a unique competence on offshore operations in harsh environments and design, development and maritime operation of seismic vessels. Through strategic value chain investments the group has substantial knowledge and experience within offshore subsea and marine seismic.
 
GC Rieber Shipping owns and operates six advanced multifunctional special purpose vessels for defined markets within offshore subsea, ice research and support and marine seismic. Furthermore, GC Rieber Shipping has ordered four offshore newbuildings for delivery in 2009/2010. The group's strategic value chain investments encompass the subsea contractor Technocean (58% shareholding), the geotechnical surveying company Bluestone Offshore (40% shareholding), as well as the seismic company Hexio (60% shareholding). GC Rieber Shipping is also in charge of marine ship management for 10 seismic vessels owned by PGS, CGGVeritas and Fugro, as well as project management and building supervision for four advanced seismic newbuildings for PGS. 
 
The company is headquartered in Bergen with ship management offices in Sevenoaks (England), Singapore and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (Russia), which provides global presence. The company is listed on Oslo Børs with ticker RISH. Further information is available on the company's website: www.gcrieber-shipping.no.