SINGAPORE - Singaporean rig builder Sembcorp Marine announced on Friday (April 22) that it has begun arbitration proceedings against embattled Brazil oil rig supplier Sete Brasil's subsidiaries.
Sembcorp Marine said that it was informed by Sete Brasil on Wednesday that its shareholders had agreed to a plan to file for a judicial recovery.
Sete Brasil has not paid Sembcorp Marine for orders worth billions since November 2014.
The rig builder has seven drillships worth US$7 billion (S$9.4 billion) for Sete Brasil on its order books.
Sembcorp Marine added that in the last financial year, the company had made provisions of S$329 million for the Sete contracts.
Sete Brasil, set up in 2011 to build the world's biggest deep-water drilling fleet for Petrobras, fell into deep financial distress after it failed to secure long-term financing amid a sweeping corruption probe involving the state-run oil producer.
Sembcorp Marine is due to announce its quarterly results next Wednesday.
