UK-based offshore well plugging & abandonment company Well-Safe Solutions said Thursday it had secured a contract to plug and abandon (P&A) 14 wells on the UK continental shelf. The work is expected to secure 60 new offshore positions.
The deal, of an undisclosed value and with an unnamed client, will be the first contract for Well-Safe Solutions' recently bought Well-Safe Defender semi-submersible rig. The company bought the rig, then known as the WilPhoenix, from Awilco Drilling in June.
According to Well-Safe Solutions, the Well-Safe Defender rig is currently undergoing a host of efficiency enhancements as part of its integration into the business, as well as the completion of its recertification ahead of mobilization in March 2023. The work under the new contract will take around 250 days to complete.
Neil Ferguson, Operations Director at Well-Safe Solutions, said: “This is a very exciting time for our teams, with a little over a month between Well-Safe taking ownership of the Well-Safe Defender and the signing of this contract with our latest client.”
Well Safe Defender bridge - Credit: Well-Safe Solutions
Gavin Robinson, Commercial Manager at Well-Safe Solutions, added: “We are delighted to assist our client, a leading European operator, with meeting their decommissioning obligations on these historic fields." Robertson did not say which 'historic' fields exactly he was referring to.
The Well-Safe Defender is the second semi-submersible rig in its fleet after the company in 2019 bought the Ocean Guardian semi-submersible drilling unit from Diamond Offshore and converted it into a plugging and abandonment rig. The company also has a jack-up unit - Well-Safe Protector- bought from Seadrill in 2020.
No Virgin Steel
Robinson said: "Like the Well-Safe Guardian and Well-Safe Protector, the Well-Safe Defender is a dedicated decommissioning asset converted from a drilling rig. Clients benefit from a greatly reduced carbon footprint and quicker mobilization times as a result, as no virgin steel is required for a new-build rig.
“In addition to the clear economic benefits of this approach, we expect this work to generate approximately 60 new positions offshore, with several supporting roles also required onshore. This will take the total estimated headcount in Well-Safe to 330 people in early 2023.”
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