SFL Corporation Ltd. has signed a $50 million contract with a subsidiary of Portugal's Galp Energia to deploy the harsh environment semi-submersible rig Hercules in Namibia.
The contract is for two wells plus optional well testing and is expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2023. Without any options, the duration is approximately 115 days, including mobilization to Namibia.
The Hercules is currently undergoing its special survey in Norway before its mobilization to Canada for a contract with ExxonMobil, before starting transit to Namibia.
Ole B. Hjertaker, CEO of SFL Management AS, said: "We are pleased to announce this follow-on contract for the Hercules, which will keep the rig continuously employed until the end of the first quarter of 2024. The new contract illustrates the attractiveness and versatility of the Hercules as a harsh environment oil exploration and development rig for the international market. With increasing demand and few available drilling rigs with Hercules’ capabilities, we see additional upside in day rates and contract term from 2024 onwards”.
Kjetil Gjersdal, Chief Executive Officer of Odfjell Drilling, a company responsible for management and marketing of the rig:"“Since taking on management and marketing for the Hercules, we have worked tirelessly on facilitating the vessel being ready for operations in Canada while
also working to secure work after this. Agreeing this contract with Galp Energia, the third contract for work in Namibia we have agreed within the last year, is very exciting for our company and we look forward to working with SFL and Galp Energia to meet expectations safely and efficiently."
Namibia was placed on the global oil and gas exploration map last year with two giant oil discoveries made by TotalEnergies (Venus) and Shell (Graff). In March 2023, Shell also made a discovery at the Jonker-1X deep-water exploration well in PEL-39 Exploration License, offshore Namibia.