Egypt’s Maridive and Oil Services said it won a $117 million contract to install offshore oil services for Indian state-run explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corp.

The biggest oil services firm in the Middle East by fleet size said in a statement it would begin construction on the project in 2011.

The project would be completed in the first half of 2012.

Oilfield services companies have been hit hard by the global financial crisis, which prompted oil and gas producers to cut spending, although some services companies have recently begun to see new orders.

Maridive added that it also won several contracts to lease its vessels in north and west Africa with a total value of $33 million.

The new contracts raise Maridive’s backlog of contracts 25 percent to $750 million until 2012.

Shares in Maridive advanced 0.6 percent, while Egypt’s benchmark index traded up 0.7 percent.

Maridive, which serves Total, Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BP Plc, Saudi Aramco, Qatargas, Kuwait Oil Company and other oil giants, owns over 60 marine units and has contracted to receive about six vessels and one barge by 2012.

The firm’s third-quarter net profit more than tripled year-on-year to $25.5 million after a rebound in offshore construction boosted margins. Revenue more than doubled to $103 million.

(Source: Reuters)