HOUSTON, March 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Parker Drilling Company (NYSE: PKD) today announced that it has commenced a cash tender offer and consent solicitation for any and all of the $225,000,000 outstanding principal amount of its 9-5/8% Senior Notes due 2013 (the "Notes") (CUSIP No. 701081AM3, 701081AL5).

Under the terms of the tender offer, the total consideration to be paid for each validly tendered Note will be equal to $1,034.58 per $1,000 principal amount of Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest to the date of payment. The total consideration includes a consent payment of $30 per $1,000 principal amount of Notes, payable only to holders who tender their Notes and validly deliver their consents prior to 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on March 19, 2010 (the "Consent Date"). Holders who validly tender their Notes after the Consent Date will receive the total consideration less the consent payment of $30, or $1,004.58 per $1,000 principal amount of the Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest to the date of payment. The tender offer contemplates an early settlement option, so that holders whose Notes are validly tendered prior to the Consent Date and accepted for purchase could receive payment as early as March 22, 2010.  The tender offer will expire at 11:59 p.m., New York City time, on April 2, 2010, unless extended or earlier terminated.  

In connection with the tender offer, the Company is also seeking consents to certain proposed amendments to the indenture under which the Notes were issued. The purpose of the proposed amendments is to eliminate certain restrictive covenants contained in the indenture, thereby affording the Company additional financial and operational flexibility. Holders who tender their Notes will be required to consent to the proposed amendments and holders may not deliver consents to the proposed amendments without tendering their Notes in the tender offer. The tender offer is conditioned upon, among other things, the completion by the Company of certain related financing transactions.  

The Company has engaged BofA Merrill Lynch as Dealer Manager for the tender offer and as Solicitation Agent for the consent solicitation.  Persons with questions regarding the tender offer should contact BofA Merrill Lynch at (888) 292-0070 (toll free) or (980) 388-4603 (collect). Requests for copies of the Offer to Purchase and Consent Solicitation Statement or other tender offer materials may be directed to D.F. King & Co., Inc., the Information Agent, at (800) 848-2998 or (212) 269-5550 (collect).

This press release is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell the Notes. The offer relating to the Notes is made only by an Offer to Purchase and Consent Solicitation Statement dated March 8, 2010.

About Parker Drilling Company

Parker Drilling Company provides high-performance contract drilling solutions, rental tools and project management services to the worldwide energy industry. Parker operates 28 land rigs in strategic international markets and 15 offshore barge rigs, primarily in the coastal waters of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The Company's Rental Tools business rents premium equipment to operators in active land and offshore markets in North America.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements that are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements contained in this press release, other than statements of historical facts, are "forward-looking statements" for purposes of these provisions.  These forward-looking statements include the statements related to the tender offer, including the total consideration to be paid for tendered notes, the amount of the consent payment, the Consent Date, the date upon which holders may receive payment, the expiration time and the related financing transactions.  The Company may not be able to complete the tender offer or the related financing transactions on the anticipated terms or at all.  The Company's ability to complete the tender offer and the related financing transactions will depend, among other things, on market conditions for debt securities in general and the Company's debt securities in particular.  In addition, the Company's ability to complete the tender offer and the related financing transactions and the Company's business are subject to the risks described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  The Company's annual, quarterly and special reports are available over the Internet at the SEC's web site at http://www.sec.gov.

SOURCE Parker Drilling Company