Commenting on the proposed transaction Sy Van Dyk, DDH1 MD and CEO, said: "For DDH1, partnering with the leading underground diamond driller in Australia is a natural evolution to our specialised surface drilling operations and in line with the disciplined growth strategy we unveiled as part of our ASX listing in March 2021.
"We have enormous respect for what Kent Swick and his team at Swick have delivered to their customers over the years and are very excited about their potential growth as they deploy their engineering innovations and services which demonstrate a deep understanding of their customer requirements.
"Further, with a combined drill fleet of more than 170 drill rigs in FY22, which will be Australia's largest fleet, we expect to secure meaningful synergies over time."
When DDH1 listed on the ASX in March 2021, the company disclosed a multi-faceted growth strategy that included pursuing new growth opportunities, driving higher rig utilisation and rate increases, expanding its industry-leading fleet and pursuing acquisitions that can deliver a strategic advantage and enhanced value for shareholders.
DDH1 is also uniquely placed to work cooperatively with Swick as it deploys its emerging range of drilling technologies. DDH1 offers highly complementary exploration and mining drilling expertise and a track record of working with a range of exploration and mining companies.
The combination of the two Western Australian-based businesses will create a global scale mineral drilling company with a balance of surface (~60 per cent) and underground (~40 per cent) drilling from a combined fleet of more than 170 rigs generating approximately AUS$445 million (US$328 million) per annum in revenues.
Consistent with DDH1's current practice for its own three business brands - DDH1 Drilling, Ranger Drilling, Strike Drilling - the company expects to maintain the Swick drilling business as a standalone division to ensure a continuation of the successful branding and customer service focus.
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