Maersk Drilling has ordered potentially up to three new ultra harsh environment jack-up rigs, underpinned by a five year contract with BP for plugging and abandonment work on the Norwegian North Sea Valhall field.
The first new rig, an XL Enhanced 4, will be built at the Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) shipyard in South Korea, under a US$650 million turnkey contract, with delivery scheduled in mid-2016.
The contract with DSME includes options for delivery of up to two additional units, with delivery in 2016/2017.
The latest new rig will have the capability to be electrically powered from shore via the Valhall complex.
It is of the same class as three ultra harsh jack-up rigs, XL Enhanced 1-3, ordered in February 2011 and May 2012, and currently under construction at Keppel FELS in Singapore.
All four XL Enhanced ultra harsh environment jack-up rigs are based on the design of the Mærsk Innovator and the Mærsk Inspirer.
They are are designed to operate in the harsh North Sea environment and comply with the rules and regulations of the Norwegian sector.
All four rigs will be delivered from the yards between 2014-2016 and all have long term contracts.
The estimated value of the contract with BP Norway is US$ 812 million, including mobilisation from South Korea to Norway, but excluding cost escalation.
BP Norway has options to extend the contract by up to 10 years.
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