Transocean’s Polar Pioneer has recently become the center of attention in Seattle. On 12 May 2015 a request was made by the Port of Seattle commissioners which asked Shell to postpone the rig’s move to the Port of Seattle’s Terminal 5 while permitting issues are worked out…
A leading control and instrumentation firm has been awarded a six-figure contract to supply control systems to Awilco Drilling’s (AWDR) semi-submersible drilling unit, the WilPhoenix. The Aberdeen-based RCP control system upgrade on…
Mexican operator Pemex has reassigned Pemex Exploration and Production (PEP) Director General Gustavo Hernandez and replaced him with chief of staff Juan Javier Hinojosa Puebla, several news wires report. Bloomberg said that Hernandez…
Diamond Offshore's Ocean Victory semisubmersible drilling rig has arrived in Trinidad and Tobago to start drilling operations for BP. The rig, which is currently taking on personnel, equipment and supplies, in port, is due to move to the Juniper field…
Bergen Group terminated a deal with Semco Maritime to sell the company’s yard facility just before closing occurred. The deal was announced on 13 April 2015 and the transaction was subject to final closing no later than 30 April 2015…
An initiative to help protect the American oil and gas industry from cyber attacks has been launched by Lloyds Register Energy at this year’s Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston. Lloyds Register Energy says control systems…
UAE-based rig builder and fabrication firm Lamprell has been awarded a jackup construction contract by Abu Dhabi's National Drilling Co. (NDC). Image of the Muhaiyimat for National Drilling Co…
Baker Hughes Inc. issued its international rig count that showed 1251 rigs operating worldwide in March 2015 outside of the US and Canada. Unsurprisingly, global rig counts have dropped significantly due to an approximate 50% drop in crude oil prices since 2014…
An overboard incident on the Scarabeo 8 semisubmersible drilling unit offshore unit was caused by missing grating on the blowout preventer (BOP) carrier platform grating, a report by Norway's Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) says. The…
Norway-based Odfjell's newbuild deepwater semisubmersible Deepsea Aberdeen has started drilling operations under a seven-year contract with BP on the Quad 204 field development project West of Shetland, UK. Deepsea Aberdeen (pictured)…
The first well drilled using the new build jackup giant Maersk Interceptor (pictured) have reaped successful results for operator Det norske, the firm said this morning. The new unit, operating in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea…
NOV's senior vice president and chief financial officer, Jeremy D. Thigpen, has left the company effective immediately to become president and CEO of rig owner Transocean. Thigpen succeeds Ian C. Strachan who was appointed interim CEO…
Norway-based North Atlantic Drilling (NADL) and Russia's Rosneft recently agreed to extend the termination date of the 2014 framework agreement until May 31, 2017. The agreement states that either party can end the agreement, including any offshore drilling contracts…
The GSF Explorer drillship is next on the chopping block as Transocean decides to scrap its 19th rig, causing an estimated US$120 million hit to the company. The Transocean Sedco Express was awarded a 45-day contract…
Drill rig fleet operators are dropping dayrates as the market is squeezed due to the precipitous fall in global crude price. Industry insiders say dayrate bargaining by upstream companies is the play of the day. Rigs operating in the Middle East are particularly exposed…