Valaris Limited

History[edit]

In 1975, after the 1973 oil crisis, John R. Blocker bought Choya Energy, a six-rig contract drilling company based in Alice, Texas, and renamed the company Blocker Energy.^[2]


In 1980, the company became a public company via an initial public offering.^[3]


In 1981 and early 1982, the company borrowed heavily to expand its fleet to 54 rigs.^[4]


However, in late 1982, the price of oil plunged and, to avoid bankruptcy, Blocker Energy restructured, giving 64% of the company to its banks in exchange for $240 million in debt forgiveness. By 1983, the company was only operating 6 rigs, although that number increased to 24 in 1984. By 1985, the worldwide employee count of the company was down to 500.^[2][5]


Richard Rainwater's BEC Ventures made an investment in the company in 1986 and chose Carl F. Thorne to run the company, which he did until his retirement 20 years later.^[6]


In 1987, the company changed its name to Energy Service Company (Ensco).


In 1990, in a transaction orchestrated by Rainwater, who owned 21% of the company, the company acquired Penrod, previously controlled by Ray Lee Hunt, which added 19 rigs to its fleet.^[7][8]


In 2010, the company moved its headquarters to London and became a UK-registered company.^[9][10]


In May 2011, the company acquired Pride International.^[11] The company closed its Dallas office and consolidated it into its Houston office.^[12]


In October 2017, the company acquired Atwood Oceanics for $860 million and became the largest owner of jackup fleets worldwide.^[13][14]


In 2019, the company merged with Rowan Companies^[15] and changed its name to Valaris plc.^[16]


In August 2020, the company filed for a prearranged bankruptcy.^[17] It emerged from bankruptcy in May 2021.^[18][19]