Some O&G plays see light after oil's 2020 shock

Anita Gabriel

Published Thu, Sep 16, 2021 · 05:50 AM

THE hurly burly of corporate activity by offshore giants Keppel Corp and Sembcorp Marine has grabbed a chunk of the limelight in the broader oil and gas (O&G) sector this year.

That's understandable with their bold reboot and restructuring efforts, including a planned landmark merger of their offshore and marine businesses. Even beleaguered Sembmarine has been buoyed - with a share price of just over eight Singapore cents, some are saying all the negatives are priced in.

But these happenings have overshadowed some recoveries among the smaller counters, which were whiplashed by oil's 2014 slump and then turned inside out by the pandemic last year.

What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger

One of the stand-out performers is Marco Polo Marine, which has displayed surprising resilience in pandemic times. A rationalisation of its O&G offshore support business, in the wake of the 2014 oil crisis, has left the integrated marine logistics company st…