It was a busy week in the offshore drilling sector as new work was secured by Noble and Valaris rigs, reports Esgian in its Week 2 Rig Analytics Market Roundup.
Contracts
LLOG has exercised a six-month option for Noble 12,000-ft drillship Noble Valiant in the US GOM, ahead of the start of the rig’s previously-fixed six-month contract.
Noble has been awarded a contract with Wintershall Noordzee for the 350-ft harsh environment jackup Noble Resilient to plug and abandon two wells in the Danish North Sea.
Valaris has secured new work for its 12,000-ft drillships in the Americas, with a two-year contract extension for Valaris DS-16 in the US GOM and an option exercised for Valaris DS-17 in Brazil.
Several Valaris jackups have secured new contracts or had options exercised worldwide, keeping units working in the North Sea and Trinidad & Tobago. Meanwhile, a previously-fixed contract for a jackup offshore Australia has been terminated before it began.
Drilling Activity and Discoveries
Portugal-based Galp has confirmed the discovery of a "significant column of light oil in reservoir-bearing sands of high quality," at the Mopane-1x well, in block PEL83, offshore Namibia.
Equinor’s exploration well 30/4-4 in the North Sea off Norway is dry. The well was drilled about seven kilometres north of the Martin Linge field and 180 kilometres west of Bergen.
2023 was an active year on the Norwegian shelf with 92 fields in operation at year-end, 27 projects under development, and many exploration wells drilled. According to the Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD), the high activity levels seen in 2023 will continue through 2024.
Eni has begun drilling the Murene exploration well on Block CI-205 offshore Côte d’Ivoire with the Saipem-managed 12,000-ft drillship Deep Value Driller.
TotalEnergies has made a Final Investment Decision (FID) on the Harald East Middle Jurassic well (HEMJ), located in the Danish North Sea. The well is expected to be drilled in the summer of 2024.
Demand
Lebanon's energy ministry launched the nation's third oil & gas exploration licensing round on 27 December 2023, inviting bids for nine available blocks.
ONGC has opened commercial bids for the ongoing rig requirement to contract three HPHT jackups for three years, with an estimated starting date in Q3 2024. The bidders are Jagson Drilling, Greatship, Aban Offshore, and Shelf Drilling. Jagson Drilling was the lowest bidder with the 1975-built 300-ft Deepsea Treasure with a dayrate of $96k.
Mobilisation/Rig Moves
The Foresight-owned 350-ft jackup Vivekanand 1 has commenced operations with ONGC offshore India.
The Valaris-owned 400-ft N Class jackup Valaris Norway has completed its contract with THREE60 Energy, on behalf of North Sea Natural Resources (NSNR), and is heading to its next location.
Diamond Offshore's 10,000-ft semisub Ocean Courage started its four-year contract with Petrobras in Brazil in early December 2023.
Following Valaris’ exercise of its options and the delivery of the 12,000-ft newbuild drillships Valaris DS-13 and Valaris DS-14 in December 2023, the rigs have now left South Korea and are being mobilised to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands to be stacked until they are contracted for work.
Valaris 12,000-ft drillship Valaris DS-8 has started work with Petrobras offshore Brazil on a three-year contract.
Stena Drilling's 10,000-ft drillship Stena Carron left Guyana on 11 January 2024 for Las Palmas for its special periodic survey (SPS).
Other News
Thai oil company PTTEP and its Japanese partner Inpex are set to conduct a study on carbon storage potential in the northern Gulf of Thailand.
Following payment delays by General Hydrocarbons Limited (GHL) under a drilling contract with Dolphin Drilling in Nigeria, Dolphin has received part payment and proposed payment plan related to remaining past due payments.
TotalEnergies is boosting its interest in two offshore Namibian blocks in the Orange basin, notable for the Venus discovery.
Beacon Offshore Energy and its subsidiaries have taken the final investment decision to develop the Winterfell discovery in the US GOM as a subsea tieback.
The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador is proceeding with Phase III of its review of the Canadian province’s current offshore oil and gas interests and has hired the financial advisory group Rothschild & Co. to present some of the assets in its portfolio to potential buyers.
Dolphin Drilling has announced a judgement handed down by the Court of Appeal in the UK regarding a legacy tax case. The decision will be appealed. The case is related to tax deductions claimed by Dolphin Drilling under the oil contractor activities rules.