Property and Equipment

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2021

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property and equipment as of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020 consisted of the following (in millions):


	Successor		Predecessor
	September 30, 2021		December 31, 2020
Drilling rigs and equipment	$	865.6	$	12,584.4
Work-in-progress	33.3		446.1
Other	34.2		178.8
	$	933.1	$	13,209.3

Impairments of Long-Lived Assets

Predecessor

During the four months ended April 30, 2021, we recorded an aggregate pre-tax, non-cash impairment with respect to certain floaters of $756.5 million, which is included in loss on impairment in our Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations.

During the first and second quarters of 2020, we recorded an aggregate pre-tax, non-cash impairment with respect to certain floaters, jackups and spare equipment of $3.6 billion which is included in loss on impairment in our Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations.

Assets held-for-use

On a quarterly basis, we evaluate the carrying value of our property and equipment to identify events or changes in circumstances ("triggering events") that indicate the carrying value may not be recoverable. For rigs whose carrying values were determined not to be recoverable, we recorded an impairment for the difference between their fair values and carrying values.

Predecessor

During the first quarter of 2021, as a result of challenging market conditions for certain of our floaters, we revised our near-term operating assumptions which resulted in a triggering event for purposes of evaluating impairment. We determined that the estimated undiscounted cash flows were not sufficient to recover the carrying values for certain rigs and concluded they were impaired as of March 31, 2021.

Based on the asset impairment analysis performed as of March 31, 2021, we recorded a pre-tax, non-cash loss on impairment in the first quarter for certain floaters totaling $756.5 million. We measured the fair value of these assets to be $26.0 million at the time of impairment by applying either an income approach, using projected discounted cash flows or estimated sales price. These valuations were based on unobservable inputs that require significant judgments for which there is limited information, including, in the case of an income approach, assumptions regarding future day rates, utilization, operating costs and capital requirements. In instances where we applied an income approach, forecasted day rates and utilization took into account current market conditions and our anticipated business outlook.

During the first quarter of 2020, the COVID-19 global pandemic and the response thereto negatively impacted the macro-economic environment and global economy. Global oil demand fell sharply at the same time global oil supply increased as a result of certain oil producers competing for market share which lead to a supply glut. As a consequence, Brent crude oil fell from around $60 per barrel at year-end 2019 to around $20 per barrel as of mid-April 2020. These adverse changes and impacts to our customer's capital expenditure plans in the first quarter resulted in further deterioration in our forecasted day rates and utilization for the remainder of 2020 and beyond. As a result, we concluded that a triggering event had occurred, and we performed a fleet-wide recoverability test. We determined that our estimated undiscounted cash flows were not sufficient to recover the carrying values of certain rigs and concluded such were impaired as of March 31, 2020.

Based on the asset impairment analysis performed as of March 31, 2020, we recorded a pre-tax, non-cash loss on impairment in the first quarter with respect to certain floaters, jackups and spare equipment totaling $2.8 billion. We measured the fair value of these assets to be $72.3 million at the time of impairment by applying either an income approach, using projected discounted cash flows or estimated sales price. These valuations were based on unobservable inputs that require significant judgments for which there is limited information, including, in the case of an income approach, assumptions regarding future day rates, utilization, operating costs and capital requirements. In instances where we applied an income approach, forecasted day rates and utilization took into account then

current market conditions and our anticipated business outlook at that time, both of which had been impacted by the adverse changes in the business environment observed during the first quarter of 2020.

During the second quarter of 2020, given the anticipated sustained market impacts arising from the decline in oil price and demand late in the first quarter, we revised our long-term operating assumptions which resulted in a triggering event for purposes of evaluating impairment and we performed a fleet-wide recoverability test. As a result, we recorded a pre-tax, non-cash impairment with respect to two floaters and spare equipment totaling $817.3 million. We measured the fair value of these assets to be $69.0 million at the time of impairment by applying an income approach or estimated scrap value. These valuations were based on unobservable inputs that require significant judgments for which there is limited information including, in the case of the income approach, assumptions regarding future day rates, utilization, operating costs and capital requirements.

Assets held-for-sale

Our business strategy has been to focus on ultra-deepwater floater and premium jackup operations and de-emphasize other assets and operations that are not part of our long-term strategic plan or that no longer meet our standards for economic returns. We continue to focus on our fleet management strategy in light of the composition of our rig fleet. While taking into account certain restrictions on the sales of assets under our Indenture dated April 30, 2021 (the “First Lien Notes Indenture”), see “Note 11 – Debt" for additional details on restrictions, as part of our strategy, we may act opportunistically from time to time to monetize assets to enhance stakeholder value and improve our liquidity profile, in addition to reducing holding costs by selling or disposing of older, lower-specification or non-core rigs. To this end, we continually assess our rig portfolio and actively work with our rig broker to market certain rigs.

On a quarterly basis, we assess whether any rig meets the criteria established for held-for-sale classification on our balance sheet. All rigs classified as held-for-sale are recorded at fair value, less costs to sell. We measure the fair value of our assets held-for-sale by applying a market approach based on unobservable third-party estimated prices that would be received in exchange for the assets in an orderly transaction between market participants or a negotiated sales price. We reassess the fair value of our held-for-sale assets on a quarterly basis and adjust the carrying value, as necessary.

During the third quarter of 2021 (Successor), we classified VALARIS 142 and VALARIS 22, both rigs included in our Jackups segment, as held-for-sale. The fair value, less cost to sell, based on each rig's estimated sales price, was in excess of the respective carrying value. In October 2021, we completed the sale of both rigs.

Assets held-for-sale had an aggregate carrying value of $2.3 million and is included in other assets, net, on our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet as of September 30, 2021 (Successor) and December 31, 2020 (Predecessor).