Offshore driller Noble Corporation has secured about $565 million in new contract value since its last fleet update, lifting its backlog to $7.5 billion as fleet utilization improved.
Utilization of the company’s 29 marketed rigs rose to 68% in the first quarter from 64% in the previous quarter, while marketed floater utilization increased to 68% from 62%. Recent awards added around five rig years of new floater backlog, with dayrates for Tier-1 drillships rising to the low-to-mid $400,000 range.
Among key contract developments, Petrobras extended the Noble Courage by 1,115 days through December 2030, adding $339 million in backlog. The dayrate from April 2026 through December 2027 was reduced from $290,100 to $280,000, followed by the extension period at $309,500 per day.
Woodside awarded the Noble Deliverer a five-well contract in Australia valued at $121 million excluding additional services and potential upgrades. The contract is expected to start in the second or third quarter of 2027 and includes options for up to two additional wells.
Noble Developer received a one-well contract from ExxonMobil in Guyana at a dayrate of $375,000, scheduled to begin in early 2027 in direct continuation of its current programme.
Noble BlackRhino had an option well exercised by Beacon in the U.S. Gulf, which commenced in April.
Noble Venturer secured a one-well contract with Planet One in Ghana at a dayrate of $430,000, expected to start in late 2026, with options for two additional wells.
Noble Viking also secured a one-well contract in Malaysia in direct continuation of its existing backlog.
“We commenced 2026 with solid operational and financial results. Commercial momentum remains brisk, highlighted by the Noble Courage’s three-year extension with Petrobras and the Noble Deliverer’s five-well program with Woodside. We remain intensely focused on project execution, with several important contract commencements scheduled over the course of this year, each of which is progressing well,” said Robert Eifler, Chief Executive Officer of Noble Corporation.
The company maintained its full-year revenue and EBITDA guidance, while raising its capital expenditure outlook due to the reactivation of the Noble Deliverer.