Oslo-listed offshore drilling rig owner Northern Ocean has won a contract with TotalEnergies for its Deepsea Mira semi-submersible drilling rig to be used in a "multi-country" drilling program.
Starting in the middle of the second quarter of 2023, the 300-day drilling program using the Norwegian-flagged drilling rig will initially kick off in Namibia.
TotalEnergies will have one 180-day option and one 90-day option to extend the charter for the rig previously known as the West Mira.
According to Northern Ocean, the deal adds around $135 million of firm revenue backlog to the company. The figure excludes bonuses, extension options, and demobilization.
The rig is managed by Norwegian drilling contractor Odfjell Drilling. The drilling firm has started reactivation work and mobilization preparation.
The news of the new contract comes just days after Northern Ocean's other semi-submersible drilling rig, Deepsea Bollsta, started its drilling contract with Shell in Namibia. Namibia is where both TotalEnergies and Shell made large oil discoveries earlier this year.
Scott McReaken, CEO of Northern Ocean, said: "This contract award from TotalEnergies marks a new beginning for the company.
"We have now secured full employment of our fleet while adding over $250 million in backlog since August. The Deepsea Bollsta has safely mobilized on time in Namibia, and we are excited to repeat a transit to West Africa with the Deepsea Mira for [TotalEnergies]. Together with our manager, Odfjell Drilling, we continue to build a position of strength in this recovering offshore drilling market.”
Northern Ocean on Tuesday raised around $45 million in gross proceeds through a private placement of shares, to fund the West Mira reactivation costs, working capital, and other general corporate purposes.
Built in 2019, the Deepsea Mira is a 6th generation dynamically positioned/anchor-moored semi-submersible drilling rig of Moss Maritime CS60E design. It is designed to operate in both benign and harsh environments, with a maximum operational water depth of 3000 meters.
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