Ensco plc disclosed Thursday that the company has sold ENSCO 85 (300' ILC), a jackup rig built in 1981, for $64 million. The net book value of the rig was approximately $54 million. The pre-tax gain on this sale was approximately $10 million, which will be included in second quarter 2014 operating results. 

“Year to date, we have sold three jackup rigs and recently we ordered two ENSCO 140 Series jackups,” said Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Jay Swent. “Continuous high-grading keeps us at the forefront of industry technology and we continue to have the largest premium jackup fleet in the world.” 

Since the beginning of 2010, Ensco has sold 14 rigs generating pre-tax gains of approximately $90 million. During the same period, Ensco has taken delivery of 12 high-performance rigs, including five Samsung DP3 ultra-deepwater drillships, five ENSCO 8500 Series ultra-deepwater semisubmersibles and two ENSCO 120 Series ultra-premium harsh environment jackups. Ensco has eight additional rigs under construction - five premium jackups and three ultra-deepwater drillships - that reinforce the Company’s commitment to standardization.