Apparently undeterred by low oil prices, oil and gas output from ultra deepwater (>1000m water depth) fields will continue the relentless growth seen in recent years. Image from Shell. In…
BP awarded Technip a lump sum project for the design, engineering, fabrication, installation and pre-commissioning of the new production pipeline systems on the south side of the Thunder Horse production drilling quarters unit in the Gulf of Mexico…
Petrobras encountered the presence of light oil at well 3-BRSA-1296-SES in concession BM-SEAL-10, BlockSEAL-M-499 in the Sergpipe basin’s ultra deepwaters offshore Brazil. According to Petrobras, the higher market value light oil has good reservoir porosity and permeability…
Odfjell Drilling has taken delivery of Deepsea Aberdeen semisubmersible drilling rig from Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) in Korea. Deepsea Aberdeen, pictured, is a sixth generation ultra deepwater and harsh environment semisubmersible of enhanced GVA 7500 design…
Chevron’s Angolan subsidiary, Cabinda Gulf Oil Co. Ltd., extended its contract for the ultra deepwater semisubmersible Maersk Deliverer offshore Angola for two years. Maersk says that the estimated revenue potential from the two-year extension is US$387 million…
Maersk Drilling named their fourth ultra deepwater drillship this morning in a ceremony held at the Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) shipyard in Geoje-Si, South Korea. Maersk Voyager Image…
The outlook for the deepwater and ultra deepwater market is positive, with a forecast capital growth rate of around 8% between 2014 and 2018, according to Infield Systems Ltd.’s deepwater and ultra deepwater report. Infield Systems anticipates…
Houston-based ABS has been selected to class the Remora HiLoad dynamic positioning (DP) BR loading unit, a second generation of the HiLoad DP system that connects to and keeps conventional tankers in position during crude oil offloading from floating production installations…
Rowan Companies has secured a two-year drilling contract for the Rowan Relentless, the fourth and final drillship in the firm's current construction program. The contract is with Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc…
Ocean Rig UDW Inc., a subsidiary of Athens-based DryShips Inc., announced that it signed a six-year contract with Total E&P Angola for drilling operations in Block 32 offshore Angola, using the ultra-deepwater drillship Ocean Rig Skyros…
As Infield Systems prepares for the annual release of its Deep and Ultra-deepwater Market Report to 2018, we look to global development of the deepwater sector and the emerging trends over the forthcoming five years. Looking back over the previous five-year period…
Ensco plc sold its ENSCO 85 jackup rig for $64 million, the company announced on 24 April 2014. The sale is part of trend among jackup rig providers including Transocean, Maersk Drilling, Noble, and Seadrill to modinize their fleets (See 'Jackups on the rise' in OE May 2014)…
Maersk Drilling’s second drillship, Maersk Valiant, has started its voyage to the US Gulf of Mexico (GOM) today after being delivered from Samsung Heavy Industries' (SHI) shipyard in Geoje-Si, South-Korea. Maersk Valiant (pictured) will…
Rig operator Ensco plc has ordered two new jackup drilling rigs from Dubai-based Lamprell, and has options for two additional units, exercisable within six months from the effective date of the contract. The inititial contract is for two high-specification…
Ensco plc announced the sale of its two remaining cold-stacked jackup rigs for US$33 million. The net value of the two rigs, ENSCO 69 and Wisconsin, both built in 1976, was approximately $9 million. The pre-tax gain on the sale is approximately $24 million…