Kawasaki Receives First Rexpeller Order for Drillships

Tokyo, January 22, 2009 — Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. announced today that it has received an order for eighteen Rexpeller units for three drillships to be used in an oilfield development project being conducted by Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras), Brazil’s state owned oil company. This is the first Rexpeller order for drillships to be used in exploratory drilling of new oil and gas wells. The order was placed by Samsung Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. in Korea, which will build the drillships for this project. The Rexpeller units will be delivered to Samsung in 2010 and 2011.

The Rexpeller is a fully azimuth-steerable thruster that can generate thrust in any horizontal direction and be utilized as a propulsor, rudder and side thruster. Its excellent maneuverability has made the Rexpeller the perfect propulsion solution for tugboats and supply boats. Kawasaki has supplied more than 500 Rexpeller units since 1983 when the product was first released.

All eighteen Rexpeller units are Kawasaki’s top of the line KST-320LF/AU (4,500 kW) model. The Rexpeller units on each drillship will operate concurrently to ensure the optimal positioning of the ship, which needs to maintain the exact same location during drilling operations.

Brazil boasts extensive oil and natural gas resources, including the mammoth Tupi oil field discovered two years ago off the coast of São Paulo State. Petrobras’ active pursuit of mining activities in Brazil has yielded an increasing amount of oil and natural gas.