OREANDA-NEWS. Lamprell (ticker: LAM), a leading provider of fabrication, engineering and contracting services to the onshore and offshore oil & gas and renewable energy industries, is pleased to announce that it has successfully completed construction of the second Caspian Sea jackup drilling rig, the "Mercury".

Completion of this rig is another significant milestone for the Group, particularly as it has been built under challenging conditions but with an excellent safety record and several weeks ahead of schedule. In light of this and further to the Company's announcement on 28 August 2014, timely completion enables the Company to release contingencies held in connection with this project which will have a significant positive impact on the 2014 financial results.

The "Mercury" is the second vessel that Lamprell has built for this client. Delivery of this rig will take place in the coming month and the rig is then expected to commence operations on its first contract elsewhere in the Caspian Sea alongside its sister vessel, the "Neptune" rig, which was delivered in November 2013. A number of key operational improvements, learnt from this first rig project, were successfully implemented onto the "Mercury" project allowing Lamprell to complete as planned.

Jim Moffat, CEO of Lamprell, commented:

"I am delighted to report that we have completed the second drilling rig for use in the Caspian Sea, not only because of the significant beneficial impact on this year's results but also because of the exemplary safety record on a highly complex project in a remote location. As a result of the close teamwork between the Lamprell and client teams, the project achieved nearly 4 million man hours without a day away from work which is a world class achievement. Our strong operational performance both in the UAE and Astrakhan allowed us to take advantage of the milder recent weather and complete construction activities on the rig ahead of schedule.

We would like to thank the client for entrusting us with this important project and we hope to work with them again in the future."