Offshore staff

DUBAI, UAE -- SeaBird Exploration Ltd. and Siem Offshore Inc. have entered into a 5-yr firm bareboat charter with three 1-yr options for the vessel Siem Mariner, a DP2 platform supply vessel, delivered from the Kleven yard in Norway December 2006. SeaBird will convert the vessel to a seabed seismic vessel at a cost of $7 million.

The $57-million contract is scheduled to begin in 2Q 2007. SeaBird has an option to purchase the vessel at the expiration of the firm 5-yr period at a price of $48 million.

According to Seabird, the company has decided to move the Harrier Explorer, previously destined for seabed into the 2D/source vessel market because of the strong market demand and is in a dialogue with several industry players for employment of the vessel.

12/22/2006