India’s Reliance Industries has elected to terminate its contract with Transocean for the Discoverer India ultra deepwater drillship at the end of the year.
The rig provider announced Reliance’s exercise to its contractual option to terminate the effective December 2016, prior to its expiration in January 2021. The rig, set at a dayrate of US$508,000, was to work offshore India.
“In accordance with the contract, Transocean will be compensated by Reliance and its partners for the early termination through a lump-sum payment of approximately $160 million,” Transocean said.
According to Transocean’s July fleet status report, the Discoverer India began a contract with Reliance in September 2013, until September 2016 in the Gulf of Mexico at a dayrate of $528,000.
Image of the Discoverer India, from Transocean.