It’s what’s inside that counts
Noble Corporation
Sustainability Report 2008
Volume 7
Table
of
Contents
Chairman’s Letter 2
About Noble
4
AbOUT OUR FLEET
Fleet distribution map
business conduct & ethics
Dow Jones Sustainability Index
HSE DIRECTION
AWARDS & RECOGNITION
Health & Safety Performance
12
Social Leadership
16
Environmental Performance
18
Economic Performance
20
2008 Data Tables
22
Chairman’s Award 24
Employee safety
2008 SAFETY RESULTS
Employee health and Wellness
learning & development
Working with communities
Working with charities
greenhouse gas emissions reductions
unplanned spills
recycling program
Invasive Marine Species Inspection
financial results
financial highlights table
safety performance by division and rig
1
Chairman’s Letter
A
s those who have followed Noble’s progress throughout our
history know, we have continuously worked to improve, expand
and refine our commitment to ensuring our employees’ health
and safety and to safeguard our environment — efforts clearly associated with sustainability. At Noble, sustainability also incorporates a
commitment to operational excellence, which extends the benefits of our
sustainability goals by delivering added value to our customers, shareholders and the economy at large.
The importance of this commitment to profitability can’t be overstated in that it makes our very
existence possible. Embracing a broad definition
of sustainability commits us to making progress on
all fronts at the same time.
Such statements could easily be made by
almost any company, and many have made them,
I am sure. Turning these laudable objectives into
meaningful results, however, requires more than
mere words or high-sounding rhetoric. The hard
work of operating safely, profitably and in an environmentally aware manner requires uncompromised effort by literally everyone in the organization. It is woven into the fabric of our corporate
culture and stems from the fact that our team
members recognize and willingly accept that they
themselves are part of the solution. Time and
time again we have seen that the best ideas for
improvement come from the minds of those on
the deck of a rig and not from the executive suite.
2
Sustainability is a commitment to which
Noble remains dedicated despite the challenging
economic times we face today. We believe our
focus on sustainability serves as a competitive
differentiator enabling us to attract and retain
the Industry’s most talented professionals and
establish strategic relationships with customers
and suppliers, factors that ultimately impact our
bottom line. Regardless of market conditions, it is
the professionalism and dedication found in every
Noble team member at every Noble facility that
is central to our safety and financial success. As
a result, we continued to make improvements in
2008 despite the disruption in the credit markets
and the global economic recession, both of which
impacted our industry deeply.
Certainly the most significant improvement
to our global sustainability results during 2008
related to the safety of our crews. Armed with a
global HSE plan that helped focus the Company’s
efforts toward tackling human behavior — and in
particular establishing a zero tolerance for shortcuts and unsafe acts in the workplace — Noble
achieved its lowest ever Total Recordable Incident
Rate (TRIR) of 0.64 last year. This surpassed our
previous best performance set in 2004 with a TRIR
of 0.74. Our 2008 safety performance also showed
a near 30 percent improvement year-over-year.
Our goal is to further extend this achievement this
year.
And while statistics and incident ratios can be
useful metrics of safety performance, it is the satisfaction and reassurance I gain in the knowledge
that we have prevented many spouses, families
and friends from having their lives both negatively
and significantly impacted as a result of serious or
disabling workplace injuries to their loved ones.
For me personally, this ranks as one of the single
most important focuses of my role as CEO and
not only provides me with a sense of a job well
done, but I believe it embodies the very essence
of sustainability.
I
continue to be personally committed
to seeing every employee complete every
hitch without injury and have challenged our
teams — both onshore and offshore — to make
working safely the single most important priority
in their day-to-day lives.
Our team members have what it takes to
make continued progress, and I know they have
the fullsupport of
our customers, who
also benefit from the
strides we make in
Health, Safety and
Environmental (HSE)
protection.
2008 marked a real turning point for the
Company’s direction and management of HSE.
I believe a tipping point has been created that
will drive further change and in doing so, enable
Noble to retain its enviable leadership position in
continuing to manage its operations in a sustainable manner. To our employees, this is something
they have long recognized simply as the Noble
brand; not by the color of the coveralls, but rather
by the values and attitudes of every loyal team
member and every individual contribution. For
me, it’s not what’s on the outside of the coveralls but what’s on the inside that makes every
employee part of the Noble spirit. That’s what we
call the “Noble Way.”
We are very proud of our accomplishments
and hope you enjoy reading about the progress
we made in the last year.
David W. Williams
Chairman, President and
Chief Executive Officer
3
About
About our Fleet
Business CONDUCT & ETHICS
Noble is a leading offshore drilling contractor
for the oil and gas industry, providing contract
drilling services with a fleet of 62 offshore drilling
units. The fleet includes 43 jackup rigs, 13 semisubmersibles, four drillships and two submersibles. With our fleet aligned around customer
needs in key geologic basins, Noble rigs are at
work in the Middle East, India, the U.S. Gulf of
Mexico, Mexico, the North Sea, Brazil and West
Africa.
The Noble Corporation Code of Business
Conduct and Ethics distills overarching core
values from the principles embodied in “The
Noble Way,” our corporate philosophy. The Code
covers a wide range of business practices and
procedures and is intended to codify, clarify and
amplify the Company’s long-standing policies
related to compliance with laws, rules and regulations; procedures for expressing concerns about
accounting and auditing matters; and full and fair
disclosure and periodic reports in all government
filings.
Dow Jones Sustainability Index
The Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI)
tracks the performance of more than 300 companies in 24 countries that lead their industries in
terms of corporate sustainability. Noble has been
a DJSI index component for approximately four
years and is the only drilling contractor listed.
Additionally, Sustainability Asset Management
(SAM) selected Noble as a Sustainability Leader
for 2008/2009 in the Oil Equipment and Services
sector. The designation is based on SAM’s assessment of the economic, environmental and social
dimensions of 24 sector companies during its
10-year review of companies for the (DJSI).
4
It is the personal responsibility of each
employee to observe the standards of conduct
and other requirements of the Code. Employees
worldwide can call a toll-free, anonymous hotline,
known as the NobleLine, to report concerns and
access support in adhering to the Code.
Noble continued to expand its fleet in
2008 with the launch of the Noble Hans
Deul jackup, currently working in the
North Sea. A third newbuild jackup, three
additional newbuild deepwater semis, as
well as a newbuild deepwater drillship will
be added to the Noble fleet by late 2011.
The Noble Dave Beard, shown here under
transport to Brazil, is the first of three
deepwater dynamically positioned semisubmersibles being built by Noble. These
units, along with the Company’s Globetrotter drillship, bolster Noble’s impressive
deepwater fleet and strengthen its ability
serve customers worldwide.
5
Fleet
Distribution
JU
SS
P
SS S
SS JU
JU
SS
Founded in the early days of oil exploration in the U.S., today Noble is a
leader in the offshore drilling industry.
Headquartered in Switzerland, Noble
has a diversified fleet of 62 mobile
offshore drilling units and more than
6,000 employees to serve its customers’
drilling needs worldwide. With operations in waters off the coasts of five
continents, Noble’s fleet includes 13
semisubmersibles, 43 jackups, four
dynamically positioned drillships and
two submersibles. These units are
positioned in some of the world’s
most active drilling environments,
including the Middle East, India,
Mexico, the United States, Brazil,
Europe and Africa.
DS
SS
JU
JU
SS
SS
SEMISUBMERSIBLES
DS
DRILLSHIPS
JU
JACKUPS
S
SUBMERSIBLES
P
PLATFORMS
O
ur Direction is Clear...
Noble has achieved industry leadership in
Health, Safety and Environment (HSE)
management by embedding HSE values and practices into
its core business and operations. We believe that good safety
leads to outstanding employee morale, lowers direct and
indirect operating costs and gives Noble a competitive edge
when seeking new business with operators.
We continue to work toward our vision of
routinely and predictably conducting operations in
a manner where no one gets hurt. While our safety
performance as measured by the Total Recordable
Injury Rate (TRIR) has improved consistently over
the past decade, recently it had begun to plateau.
This is unacceptable to Noble.
Mindful that every statistic and data point
represents an injury to a Noble employee, the
Company in early 2008 set out to achieve a step
change in safety performance. We went beyond
the detailed incident management requirements
of Noble’s HSE Management System (HSE-MS)
and studied incident root causes from a different
perspective. Noble quickly determined that in
most instances, incidents and injuries were related
to human behavior. In fact, 78 percent of recordable incidents in 2007 were directly related to
human behavior.
As a result, Noble’s HSE leadership and staff,
with support from line managers, developed a
Worldwide HSE Plan as a roadmap for achieving
improvements in Noble’s HSE performance over
the next two to three years. Chairman and CEO
David Williams announced the plan to employees
in August 2008. The plan focuses as much on
communicating the personal impact of working
safely as on the requirement to adhering to
Company policies and procedures.
I Demonstrate genuine care and concern
II Measure and respond to exposure
III Conduct safety perception audits
IV Make safety personal
V Celebrate successes
8
Noble’s Worldwide
HSE Plan is based on
five pillars for leading
change and winning
hearts and minds:
“Once the focus for safety was
displayed in direct relation to how it
impacted their families, the employees
immediately started discussing their
own obligations to their family and the
obstacles they met every day on the rig
and at home that could impact this.”
– Therald Martin,
Operations Manager, U.S. Gulf of Mexico Division
Though the behaviors of employees at the
rig site are a significant and direct contributing
factor in safety performance, the Worldwide HSE
Plan quickly illustrated that the actions of shorebased leadership teams are a significant (indirect)
contributing factor in many incidents on the rigs.
This realization requires key line managers to
change their own personal perceptions, actions
and skills to improve HSE performance on an
operating rig.
The Worldwide HSE Plan fundamentally
changes the way employees discuss, promote and
relate to safe work. Instead of treating safe work as
a condition of employment, greater consideration
is given to the personal consequences of incidents and injuries, especially the consequences to
family, friends and loved ones.
In 2008, Noble reached a turning point in the
direction and management of HSE. We embraced
a vision that retains Noble’s well-earned reputation
for working safely while capturing the Company’s
adaptability when presented with historically
stubborn challenges.
“Conversations from rig visits now
extend beyond merely working safe
on the rig and issues at work to a
much more personal level by talking
about families and safety at home and
in taking a genuine interest in each
individual.”
– Firas Adi,
Drilling Superintendent, Middle East and India Division
9
Corporate HSE
Audit/Assessment Program
To support the launch and introduction of the
Worldwide HSE Plan in August 2008, Noble also
redesigned the Corporate HSE Audit /Assessment program. The program is now centered on
measuring those actions and activities supported
by the Worldwide HSE Plan while also retaining
the established best practices for maintaining the
certifications such as ISO 14001, ISO 9001, OHSAS
18001 and the International Safety Management
(ISM) Code associated with Noble’s HSE Management System (HSE-MS).
“The redesigned Corporate HSE
Audit/Assessment Program represents a good example of how we are
all working well together to clarify
accountabilities in the pursuit of HSE
excellence.”
– Kevin Roche,
Mexico Division Manager
The redesigned Corporate HSE Audit /Assessment measures performance in three principal
areas: Visible Leadership, HSE Systems and the
Rig Culture. Rankings are assigned for each area
based on the progress and performance against
the requirements of the Worldwide HSE Plan.
In each case, rankings are graded from three
levels using an Audit /Assessment template
that describes the actions, activities and results
commensurate with each level. This has proven
extremely valuable in removing ambiguity and in
gaining consensus when assessing performance
while also helping to articulate and visualize the
actions needed for improvement.
10
Visible
Leadership
HSE
Systems
THE NOBLE WAY
Rig
Culture
The redesigned Corporate HSE Audit /
Assessment measures performance
in three principal areas.
The new Audit /Assessment has provided the
operating divisions with a very useful tool to better
target and pinpoint aspects of the operations
that may require further attention and support.
Likewise, corrective actions developed in response
to the Audit /Assessment findings are often more
effective. Such actions have been developed in
close collaboration with Noble’s Learning and
Development (L&D) group who have been instrumental in assisting the operating divisions with the
development of tailored workshops and specific
training material—especially in the area of softskill development.
The Audit /Assessment scores have additionally provided Noble with a very useful metric
to complement the traditional metrics of LTIR
and TRIR in helping to provide a more balanced
picture of each division’s HSE performance than
when using LTIR and TRIR alone. Furthermore,
there is already much evidence to suggest there
is a direct correlation between the scores from
the new Audit /Assessment program and overall
division TRIR performance.
Awards and Recognition
The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS)
presented Noble’s Gulf of Mexico Division with its
annual 2008 Safe Award for Excellence (SAFE) for
the third consecutive year. SAFE recognizes exemplary performance based on MMS inspections,
the number and severity of safety and environmental incidents, operational considerations and
use of best available technology. Noble is the first
drilling contractor to receive the award for three
consecutive years, representing the division’s
commitment to incident- and injury-free operations and consistent delivery of industry-leading
safety performance.
The Europe division was awarded the 2008
International Association of Drilling Contractors
(IADC) North Sea Chapter safety awards for the
categories of best performing jackup rig operations (over one million manhours) and also for
the best performing semisubmersible operations
(under one million manhours). While both of these
are commendable achievements in their own
right, the jackup category is the fifth consecutive
year Noble has achieved this distinction.
In addition, the Noble Cees van Diemen
team was honored for excellence in safety and
operational performance by RasGas at its Safety
and Operations Meeting. The jackup rig, located
offshore Qatar, has worked LTI-free for more than
five years.
“This award belongs to our 750 team
members, each of whom makes their
personal and collective safety ‘job one’
everyday.”
– Tommy Travis,
U.S. Gulf of Mexico Division Manager
11
Health & Safety
Performance
EMPLOYEE Safety
A core value and hallmark of Noble’s operating history is that employees are the Company’s
greatest asset and their safety is our greatest
responsibility. Behind every safety statistic is the
potential for a direct impact to the employee’s
quality of life,whether for a day, a month, a year or,
in some cases, for a lifetime.
With the launch of the Worldwide HSE Plan in
2008, Noble committed to accepting nothing less
than an injury-free operation.
While Noble has achieved low incident rates for
our rig fleet and a reputation as an industry leader,
the Worldwide HSE Plan steers Noble toward a
far more personal approach to HSE management.
We recognize that motivating employees to work
safely for the Company, while commendable and
“I recently received a letter from
an employee’s wife concerning her
husband’s understanding of the
importance of safety. It took a lifethreatening off-the-job incident to help
him realize that an incident does not
just impact one individual, it changes
the lives of all who depend on him,
from family and friends to coworkers
and his supervisors. This really
helped remind me what it is all about.
Incidents don’t just hurt the individual,
they hurt us all.”
– Ken Nettles,
Drilling Superintendent, Mexico Division
positive, ultimately misses the point if employees
behave differently and in a way that compromises
their own and their family’s safety off the rig.
The Worldwide HSE Plan has led to subtle but
significant shifts in conversations about safe work,
both from shore-based leadership teams and rig
crews. Genuine care and concern for employees
is not only increasingly more evident, but always
comes before any other priority.
12
The Company seeks to exercise our powerful
influence beyond the rig site and in ways not
directly linked to immediate operating performance to bring about meaningful changes to
employees’ personal habits and attitudes. In
short, Noble becomes the catalyst for sustained
change toward a healthier and safer lifestyle for
the employee.
Changing long-standing beliefs and habitual
personal attitudes is challenging, but Noble
believes the benefits can extend to immediate
family members, loved ones, friends and even the
larger community. Indeed, Noble’s growing footprint of influence has reached many lives, often far
beyond the rig floor and our employee base.
“Risk Potential management has
been a catalyst for realigning our
response to events, which in turn
supports the momentum being built
toward developing an unsurpassed
safety culture.”
From a practical standpoint, Noble introduced
a key tool in 2008, the Risk Potential Matrix,
to better measure the severity of incidents. A
requirement of the Worldwide HSE Plan, the
matrix has been instrumental in shifting focus in
determining incident severity away from the actual
consequence classification (for example, first-aid
case) of a reported event and toward the potential
consequence. As a result, resources and efforts
are increasingly allocated to High Risk Potential
incidents that could have resulted in very serious
consequences.
Besides helping to craft different conversations
at the worksite, especially when assessing and
measuring individual task performance, the Risk
Potential number is useful in determining if daily
operations are executed safely, even when no one
is injured. In addition, it has provided Noble and
operating divisions with a key HSE performance
metric that complements the Total Recordable
Incident Rate (TRIR) and Lost Time Incident Rate
(LTIR). Noble established a baseline metric, the
2008 High Risk Potential Rate (HRPR) that will help
the Company measure progress against future
years’ performance.
– Mike Wingfield,
Division HSE Manager, West Africa Division
13
All reported 2008
Work Related Incidents
2008 SAFETY RESULTS
All Noble’s divisions reported significant
improvements in their safety performance for
2008. This culminated in a year-end TRIR of 0.64,
bettering Noble’s previous best TRIR performance
of 0.74 set in 2004.
In addition to achieving a record TRIR performance in 2008, Noble also established a baseline
for the number of High Risk Potential incidents
incurred during the year. For all reported incidents
in 2008, High Risk Potential incidents made up
7.7%. This is important, given it illustrates that
when incidents do happen, the likelihood that they
will give rise to serious injuries is relatively small,
being less than one in ten. Having established a
baseline performance in 2008, going forward, the
operating divisions will continue to be as much
focused on this metric as the traditional metrics of
LTIR and TRIR.
High Risk
Potential Incidents
While it would be premature to suggest that
the direction established in 2008 with the launch
and introduction of the 2008/2009 Worldwide
HSE Plan is singularly responsible for the achievements in 2008 TRIR performance, it is particularly
noteworthy that marked improvements occurred
during the second half of the year. This supports
the timing of the Worldwide HSE Plan from August
onward. As the operating divisions continue to
progress and consolidate their best practices,
particularly in regard to those things that get
measured, rewarded and reinforced, expectations
are that further step changes in safety performance will be equally forthcoming in future years.
Worldwide TRIR
Noble vs. IADC
Worldwide LTIR
Noble vs. IADC
(Incidents per 200,000 hours worked)
(Incidents per 200,000 hours worked)
1.75
1.50
IADC
Noble
6
IADC
Noble
5
1.25
4
1.00
3
0.75
2
0.50
1
0.25
0.00
14
95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08
0
95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08
Health and Wellness
Noble offers health and wellness benefits and
programs for employees and their families, based
on regional norms and demands. Health benefits
may include medical, dental and vision care;
prescription drug coverage; and an Employee
Assistance Program. Health assessments and
programs for disease management and wellness
also may be available.
In the U.S. Gulf of Mexico Division, employees
can participate in a voluntary wellness program.
Participants receive a legally compliant health
assessment conducted on the rig by a trained
medic. A personalized intervention plan is
designed and discussed with the employee to
target specific risk factors such as weight, cholesterol, blood pressure and fitness. The medic works
with each individual, providing health information,
monitoring progress, coaching and encouraging.
Medics also create group fitness challenges
for rig crews focused on improving health. The
division recently held a 12-week weight-loss challenge. The 262 participants lost a total of 1,690
pounds, or an average of 6.5 pounds per person.
In addition to organized activities, division
employees are encouraged to live a healthy lifestyle by making the right choices. Noble’s focus on
wellness encourages and assists with making lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking, getting
and staying fit and managing weight. Noble also
works with offshore catering providers to offer
healthy, diet-friendly food options on rigs.
15
Social Leadership
Learning & Development
To meet the operational challenges of increasingly complex rigs, deeper drilling operations,
global operations and a diverse workforce, Noble
must equip each employee to work safely and
effectively and to manage operations and people.
We support the development of employees
throughout their careers using a broad spectrum
of resources, from on-the-rig lessons to highly
interactive classroom sessions focused on technical, safety and management skills development.
Coupled with Noble’s competency framework,
skills-building is linked to career advancement.
Noble supports continuous development for
our roughly 6,700 employees and offers regular
opportunities to upgrade knowledge, skills and
abilities. We continue to increase our investments
in employee development and training as an
engine for growth and excellence. In 2008, Noble
employees received an average of four training
days each for a total of more than 200,000 hours
of training supporting our strategic development goals: upgrading technical skills, ensuring
personal safety and developing nontechnical areas
such as management skills, ethics and systems.
Noble enhances management skills and business
acumen training to focus on complete performance: operational excellence, customer service,
personal safety and employee satisfaction.
Noble training courses support implementation of the new Worldwide HSE Plan. In 2008,
more than 200 Noble supervisors and managers
attended the Noble Supervisor Course that
16
teaches skills for leading, communicating about
difficult topics, giving performance feedback,
listening actively and engaging employees in safe
and efficient work. Our five-day HSE awareness
course is now portable so it can be delivered in
divisions, giving safety training supervisors and
HSE managers a sold grounding in Noble HSE
policies.
Noble also is taking a new approach to the
Safety Leadership Workshop (SLW). Based in part
on results of the division’s corporate HSE Audit /
Assessments, L&D designs focused curriculum to
address each division’s needs. Specific management and leadership skills are taught which
support the Worldwide HSE Plan, HSE process
and broader management learning goals.
“There is no substitute for experience” is
the philosophy that drives Noble’s leadership
development. Geographic and organizational
transfers broaden employees’ understanding of
our business, expand leadership capabilities and
improve prospects for promotion.
We are accelerating leadership development
to meet current and future operations needs. We
identify the best talent available in our operating
regions and accelerate development for promising
future leaders. We continue to see strong interest
with Noble because we offer employees the
opportunity to grow their careers while working
with the latest technologies in a fast-paced global
operation.
working with Communities
A caring and concerned workforce reaches out
to the wider community. Employees in Noble divisions support local charities primarily focused on
children, education and hunger prevention.
In response to the devastating earthquake
in Sichuan, China, in May 2008, Noble donated
$50,000 to rebuild schools in the province.
Pictured from left at the check presentation are
Qiao Shanchun, Executive Vice President of Dalian
Red Cross; Dennis McGrath, Project Manager of
the Noble Scott Marks; Lonnie Williams, Facility
Shipyard Manager of the Noble Dalian Project
Team; Derek Davis, Project Manager of the Noble
Dave Beard; and Cici Cheng, Office Manager of
the Noble Dalian Project Team.
The Mexico Division has strong ties to the
Ciudad del Carmen community. CAPEP, a school
for children with special educational needs, shown
below, is one of the division’s focus charities. The
division provides furniture, school supplies and
facility upgrades for the school. The division has
donated labor and materials for renovations, and
employees have made financial donations to
Casa Hogar Para Ninos A.C. San Pedro Pescador,
a nonprofit that helps abandoned, abused and
orphaned children. Supplies donated to the
Ciudad del Carmen Rotary Club by Noble were
used for health screenings in the local community
Working with Charities
Every holiday season, crews aboard the
Noble Ronald Hoope in the North Sea hold a
raffle and donate the proceeds to charity. In
2008, the crew contributed one-third of the
£4,500 proceeds to Acorns’ Children’s Hospice
in Worchestershire, England. Rig Manager Gerry
de Souza nominated Acorns after learning about
the children and families assisted by the organization from his wife. Acorns was raising funds
needed to provide services for 99 life-limited
children and their families during the recession.
De Souza, left, pre­sented
the donation to Sophie
James. Remaining raffle
proceeds were donated
to children’s charities in
Holland and Lithuania.
17
Environmental Performance
Greenhouse gas
emissions reductions
Recycling program
Noble uses a systematic approach to measure,
manage and reduce air emissions from our drilling
operations. Diesel engines that supply power to
Noble rigs are the primary source of greenhouse
gas emissions, including carbon dioxide, methane
and nitrous oxide, and criteria pollutants such as
nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide,
ozone, lead and particulates.
For the past eight years, Noble has used
SANGEA™ Emissions Estimation Software to
estimate carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions based on our fuel consumption. In 2008,
Noble’s estimated CO2e emissions were 555,003
tonnes compared to 2007 estimated CO2e emissions of 582,905 tonnes.
Most Noble drilling units are equipped with
trash compactors and other equipment to recycle
paper products, glass, aluminum, plastic, metal, oil
and lubricants. Noble divisions recycled 378,975
gallons of oil and lubricants and approximately 3.1
million pounds of other materials in 2008. We are
trying to improve the consistency and accuracy of
tracking recycling data in all Noble divisions.
Post-Consumer Recycling
Total volume in 2008 = 874,799 lbs.
Paper
Plastics
Glass
Global Warming Potential
(Tonnes CO2 Equivalent)
Aluminum/Tin
600
580
560
540
520
500
2006
18
2007
2008
Noble began recycling in 2002, when we
were the first drilling contractor to implement
a comprehensive recycling program in the U.S.
Gulf of Mexico. We participate in the Recycle
the Gulf® program for waste generated from
offshore operations. Clients of the Association of
Retarded Citizens (ARC) of New Iberia, Louisiana,
process recyclable materials donated by program
participants. This activity generates revenues for
the nonprofit ARC and provides employment for
developmentally challenged individuals.
Unplanned spills
Noble reports all unplanned spills to appropriate regulatory agencies. Investigating each
discharge to identify root causes led us in recent
years to implement maintenance practices,
improve deck collection methods and take other
measures to prevent spills. Every Noble rig is
equipped with spill response kits and conducts
regular emergency drills.
In 2008, Noble reported 26 unplanned spills,
35 percent fewer than in 2007. Of these, eight
spills totaling 52 gallons of hydrocarbons reached
the sea. This was 66 percent decrease in total
hydrocarbons spilled to the sea compared to 2007.
Invasive Marine
Species Inspection
Noble is in the vanguard of
drilling companies voluntarily
inspecting rigs for the presence
of potentially invasive marine
species
before
mobilizing
the units to new geographic
regions. Prior to relocating the
Noble Homer Ferrington from
West Africa to the Mediterranean Sea in 2009, an environmental management audit
was performed that identified
the possibility that organisms
attached to the semisubmersible’s hull and in the ballast
tanks could impact its new
marine environment and local
species. A more detailed study was performed,
including a hull survey by remote-operated vehicle
(ROV), which did not detect any obvious potentially invasive species. Noble contacted regulatory
agencies as part of its research into the subject.
The Company conducted a full ballast water
management process while relocating the Noble
Homer Ferrington to the Mediterranean Sea.
Noble Homer Ferrington
19
Economic Performance
In 2008, Noble reported net income of $1.6
billion, or $5.85 per diluted share, up from $1.2
billion, or $4.48 per diluted share in 2007. Operating revenues in 2008 were a record $3.4 billion,
and net cash from operating activities were $1.9
billion. Earnings per share and operating cash
flow increased for the fourth consecutive year.
The Company invested $1.2 billion in capital
projects in 2008, including $800 million for five
rigs currently under construction during the year.
These include one enhanced premium independent-leg cantilevered jackup, the Noble Scott
Marks, and three newbuild ultra-deepwater semisubmersibles, the Noble Danny Adkins, Noble
Dave Beard and Noble Jim Day. In addition, we
took delivery of the Noble Hans Deul, a newbuild
enhanced premium independent-leg cantilevered
jackup, in 2008.
Noble continued its share repurchase program,
repurchasing approximately 8.0 million ordinary
shares at an average price per share of $41.62 for
a total cost of $331.5 million in 2008.
Noble signed contracts for the construction
of a new dynamically positioned ultra-deepwater
harsh-environment Globetrotter class drillship
in 2008. The vessel is Noble’s next-generation
cost-efficient unit intended to address continuing
$3.6
% 30
$6
3.0
25
5
2.4
20
4
1.8
15
3
1.2
10
2
0.6
5
1
0.0
0
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Revenues (Billions)
20
At year-end 2008, Noble’s backlog totaled
more than $11.5 billion. National oil companies and super-major oil companies represented
approximately 73 percent of the backlog,
with large and small independent companies
accounting for approximately 24 percent and 3
percent, respectively.
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Percent Debt to Total Capital
0
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Earnings per Share (Diluted)
Noble Globetrotter drillship
demand for ultra-deepwater rigs. The Globetrotter, to be built on a fixed-price basis in two
phases, will have an innovative design capable
of working in up to 10,000 feet of water and a
vertical depth of 40,000 feet. It will measure 620
feet long and 105 feet wide and will utilize a
multi-purpose tower deign with a drilling side and
a pipe assembly side. The estimated cost is $585
million, with delivery scheduled for the second
half of 2011. Noble is seeking to put the unit
under contract.
Financial highlights
(In thousands, except per-share amounts and percentages) Y
ear Ended December 31,
2008
2007 2006
$3,446,501
$2,995,311
$2,100,239
Operating income 1,908,403
1,490,862
927,430
Income before income taxes 1,912,458
1,488,902
921,287
Net income 1,560,995
1,206,011
731,866
5.85
4.48
2.66
Net cash provided by operating activities 1,888,192
1,414,373
988,715
Capital expenditures 1,231,321
1,287,043
1,122,061
39%
37%
25%
Total assets 7,102,331
5,876,006
4,585,914
Property and equipment, net 5,642,549
4,795,916
3,858,393
923,487
784,516
694,098
Shareholders’ equity 5,290,715
4,308,322
3,228,993
Book value per share 20.20
16.06
12.00
Operating revenues Net income per diluted share Return on capital employed At year end:
Total debt All per-share information has been adjusted to reflect the Company’s two-for-one stock split effected in August 2007.
21
2008 Data Tables
ISO
14001
ISO
9001
OHSAS
18001
Brazil Division
l
l
l
Noble Leo Segerius (DS)
l
l
l
Noble Muravlenko (DS)
l
l
Noble Paul Wolff (SS)
l
Noble Roger Eason (DS)
LTI
Rate
TRIR
0.37
0.98
l
0.71
1.42
l
l
0.67
1.34
l
l
l
0.00
0.72
l
l
l
l
0.66
1.31
Noble Therald Martin (SS)
l
l
l
l
0.00
0.75
Canada Division
l
l
l
0.69
2.75
Hibernia M-71 / M-72 (P)
l
l
l
0.85
3.40
Europe Division
l
l
l
0.09
0.65
Noble Al White (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.98
Noble Byron Welliver (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble George Sauvageau (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
Noble Hans Deul (JU)
ISM
CODE
Noble Julie Robertson (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
1.88
Noble Kolskaya (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
4.02
Noble Lynda Bossler (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Piet van Ede (JU)
l
l
l
1.07
2.14
Noble Ronald Hoope (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Ton van Langeveld (SS)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
U.S. Gulf of Mexico Division
l
0.00
0.73
Noble Amos Runner (SS)
l
0.00
0.77
0.00
0.49
Noble Cyle Boudreaux (SS)
Noble Fri Rodli (S)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Jim Thompson (SS)
l
0.00
0.77
Noble Joe Alford (S)
l
0.00
1.28
Noble Lester Pettus (S)
l
0.00
1.20
Noble Lorris Bouzigard (SS)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Max Smith (SS)
l
0.00
2.45
Noble Paul Romano (SS)
l
0.00
0.82
Forward-Looking Statements
22
This Noble Corporation 2008 Sustainability Report contains certain “forward-looking statements” about the business, financial performance and prospects of the Company.
Statements about our plans, intentions, expectations, beliefs, estimates, predictions or similar expressions for the future are forward-looking statements. No assurance can be
given that the outcome of any forward-looking statement will be realized, and actual results could differ materially from those expressed. The Company’s filings with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission, which are accessible from Noble’s Web site, discuss the risks and uncertainties in our business and industry and the various factors that
could keep the outcome of any forward-looking statement from being realized.
2008 safety performance by division and rig
ISO
14001
ISO
9001
OHSAS
18001
ISM
CODE
TRIR
0.25
0.25
Mexico Division
l
Noble Bill Jennings (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Earl Frederickson (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Eddie Paul (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Gene Rosser (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble John Sandifer (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Johnnie Hoffman (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Leonard Jones (JU)
l
l
l
3.72
3.72
Noble Lewis Dugger (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Sam Noble (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Tom Jobe (JU)
l
l
l
0.00
0.00
Middle East /India Division
l
0.05
0.44
Noble Cees van Diemen (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Charles Copeland (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Charlie Yester (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Chuck Syring (JU)
l
0.96
0.96
Noble David Tinsley (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Dhabi II (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Dick Favor (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Ed Holt (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Gene House (JU)
l
0.00
0.93
Noble George McLeod (JU)
l
0.00
0.99
Noble Gus Androes (JU)
l
0.00
0.86
Noble Harvey Duhaney (JU)
l
0.00
0.93
Noble Jimmy Puckett (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Kenneth Delaney (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Mark Burns (JU)
l
0.00
1.79
Noble Roger Lewis (JU)
l
0.00
0.79
Noble Roy Rhodes (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
West Africa Division
l
0.00
0.36
Noble Carl Norberg (JU)
l
0.00
3.63
Noble Don Walker (JU)
l
0.00
1.74
Noble Ed Noble (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Homer Ferrington (SS)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Lloyd Noble (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Percy Johns (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Roy Butler (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
Noble Tommy Craighead (JU)
l
0.00
0.00
0.11
0.64
Noble Corporation
Notes:
LTI
Rate
(DS) Drillship
(JU) Independent Leg Jackup
(P) Platform
(S) Submersible
Rig totals are calculated regardless of operating status.
Divisional totals are calculated to include only operating rigs, yard and administrative activities.
Corporate totals are calculated to include all rig, yard, administrative, shipyard and subsidiary activities.
(SS) Semisubmersible
23
Chairman’s Award
The 2008 Chairman’s Award was won by the Noble Sam Noble and the Noble Ed Holt for the Western
and Eastern Hemisphere’s, respectively. The Chairman’s Award is presented on an annual basis to promote
and recognize truly exceptional performance of individual rigs and their crews in the areas of operational
efficiency, health, safety and environment (HSE) and employee development. The Chairman’s Award was
restructured in 2008 to better support and align with the focus of the Company’s HSE direction.
In the Eastern Hemisphere, crews on the
Noble Ed Holt, a jackup rig operating for ONGC
in the Middle East and India division, completed
2008 having worked 4,517 days without a Recordable Incident. For 2008, the rig operated with no
downtime and no high risk potential incidents.
The Noble Ed Holt is certified to ISO 14001.
Representatives of the winning crew members of the Noble Sam Noble (left)
and the Noble Ed Holt (right) illustrate a fundamental aspect of Noble,
working safely defines our success.
24
Design: Scott McFarlane, Noble Drilling Services Inc.
In the Western Hemisphere, crews on the
Noble Sam Noble, a jackup rig operating for
PEMEX in the Mexico division, worked 4,457
days without a Lost Time Incident and 1,869 days
without a Recordable Incident. For 2008, the
rig operated with no turnover and no high risk
potential incidents. Additionally, all rig personnel
completed 99% and 98%, respectively, for all
required customer and Noble training. The Noble
Sam Noble is certified to ISO 14001, OHSAS
18001 and the ISM Code.
www.noblecorp.com
SW-COC-1530