Schlumberger announced today that it is offering to acquire all outstanding shares, convertibles and warrants in Eastern Echo Holding Plc, a Cyprus-registered company quoted on the Oslo Axess Market under the ticker symbol "ECHO." The offer price is set at a minimum of NOK 11 and a maximum of NOK 12 per share, with the final price dependent on the acceptance level achieved under the offer. This offer values the equity of Eastern Echo on a fully diluted basis at approximately NOK 3,672 million based on NOK 12 per share.


Schlumberger already holds an irrevocable pre-acceptance from the largest Eastern Echo shareholder holding 14.4% of the issued Eastern Echo shares and owns a further 24.6% of the shares together with 45.8% of the total Eastern Echo convertible bonds. In total Schlumberger controls approximately 39% of the Eastern Echo share capital, which corresponds to approximately 35.1% on a fully diluted basis.


Eastern Echo, established in 2006, has four high-performance 3-D seismic vessels being built in Spain and two scheduled for construction in Dubai, and it holds options for two further vessels. These high-capacity vessels are ideally suited for the exploration and development markets of the future.


Commenting on the offer, Andrew Gould, Schlumberger chairman and chief executive officer, said, "The potential acquisition of Eastern Echo will further boost our plans to meet continuing substantial demand for market-leading WesternGeco Q-Marine seismic technology services."


The offer price reflects the potential synergies the Eastern Echo vessels and management may offer when combined with Schlumberger seismic markets and technology. Further, Schlumberger, through its WesternGeco business segment, possesses the operational and marine management capabilities that secure the required organizational resources to deploy and manage the vessels upon delivery.

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