$3 bn offshore oil drilling firm set up in Bahrain

MANAMA: Bahrain-based First Energy Bank on Tuesday announced the creation of a three-billion-dollar offshore oil drilling and services company, MENAdrill, for the Gulf, North Africa and Asia.

The firm, launched notably with partners Gulf Finance House of Bahrain and Switzerland's PFC Energy International, aims to have more than 20 rigs operating within three to five years, it said.

"The largest European and South American reserves are offshore. In the Middle East, Africa and Asia, offshore reserves are not fully explored," Esam Janahi, the bank's chairman, said in a statement.

"With the oil price regularly reaching record highs and reserves steadily decreasing, we saw a first-class opportunity."