Noble Corporation, a U.S.-based offshore drilling giant, has put into play a new pilot program aboard its 11-year-old drillship in collaboration with Kongsberg Maritime, a Norway-headquartered marine technology player.
While disclosing the launch of what it describes as “a transformative pilot program” aboard the Noble Sam Croft drillship, Noble emphasized that this project was made possible through its technology frame agreement with Kongsberg Maritime.
According to the rig owner, this collaboration brings together cutting-edge technology and operational expertise to enhance efficiency, safety, and sustainability in offshore drilling. The duo claims to have conducted extensive crew training, stakeholder engagement, and offshore sea trials to ensure the system is ready for real-world operations.
The pilot encompasses enhanced green DP to optimize station-keeping while reducing fuel use, upgraded riser management system (RMS) enabling high-end sensors and dynamic watch circles for precision and safety, and new calibration tools to ensuring sensor accuracy across RMS and DP.
There is also full RMS-DP integration to allow seamless data flow for smarter decisions, eWSOG to unleash electronic decision support tool for real-time operational awareness, and EcoAdvisor as an advisory system promoting fuel and emissions savings.
As the pilot project progresses, Noble plans to measure system performance, build trust in the technology, and shift toward a more data-driven operational mindset. The goal is to document benefits, identify improvements, and set the stage for future innovation.
The rig owner underlined: “This integrated solution empowers crews with real-time insights, reduces emissions and maintenance costs, and improves well connection efficiency, even in challenging ocean conditions. We’re excited to be working alongside Kongsberg Maritime to shape the future of offshore operations!”
This update comes shortly after Noble secured contract extensions with BP for two drillships in the Gulf of America (the U.S. Gulf of Mexico).