Ocean Rig UDW Inc., a global provider of offshore deepwater drilling services, today announced that it has sealed a new drilling contract for its semi- submersible drilling rig “Eirik Raude” with an independent operator, for work offshore West Africa.
The expected total backlog to complete the 2 well program is estimated at $ 67.5 million for a period of 84 days. The new contract is expected to commence after the rig completes its scheduled 10-year special survey. The customer has the option to extend the contract for one additional well for an estimated duration of approximately 40 days.
Eirik Raude was completed in 2002 as a fifth-generation semi-submersible drilling unit built to the Bingo 9000 design. The hull was constructed at the Dalian New Shipyard in China, with outfitting in the US by Friede Goldman Offshore and in Canada by Irving Shipyard of Halifax.
This rig is designed to carry out drilling operations in water depths down to 10 000 feet. Eirik Raude remains stable in harsh weather conditions owing to its superior motion characteristics and advanced dynamic positioning systems. It is fully winterised for year-round operations in extreme weather areas such as offshore Canada (Nova Scotia and Newfoundland) and offshore northern Norway (Barents Sea). Eirik Raude is recently upgraded with an 8-point mooring system.
Ocean Rig is an international offshore drilling contractor providing oilfield services for offshore oil and gas exploration, development and production drilling, and specializing in the ultra-deepwater and harsh-environment segment of the offshore drilling industry. The company owns and operates 9 offshore ultra deepwater drilling units, comprising of 2 ultra deepwater semisubmersible drilling rigs and 7 ultra deepwater drillships, 3 of which remain to be delivered to the company during 2013.
[mappress] Offshore Energy Today Staff, March 22, 2012