India's Oil and Natural Gas Company (ONGC) has agreed to a three-year contract to Vantage Drilling for use of the ultra-deepwater drillship Platinum Explorer offshore India. The Platinum Explorer is due to mobilize to India in Q4 2017…
Island Drilling has been awarded a drilling contract with OMV Norge for one well on the Wisting license in the Norwegian Barents Sea. OMV will use the Island Innovator semisubmersible drilling rig, starting in Q3 this year. The Island Innovator is currently in warm lay-up at Hanøytangen…
Maersk Drilling is bringing back the Maersk Resolve high efficiency jackup into operation after being warm stacked for a one-well deal offshore UK for Wintershall Noordzee. Maersk Resolve. From Maersk Drilling…
Aker BP has drilled a dry hole close to the Volund field in the Norwegian North Sea, according to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD). Well 24/9-11 S was drilled using the Transocean Arctic semisubmersible drilling rig in 122m water depth…
Russia's Rosneft says it has made a new oil discovery in the Laptev Sea, in the Russian Arctic. Rosneft says the Tsentralno-Olginskaya-1 well is the first in the Laptev Sea, and the northernmost exploratory well on the Eastern Arctic shelf…
Tullow Oil has contracted US-driller Noble Corp. for an exploration well on its 'game changer' Araku prospect offshore Suriname, South America. Tullow has contracted the Noble Bob Douglas drillship from early October to early November…
JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration (Malaysia) started gas production from the Layang Field, offshore Malaysia, with an estimated 12,000 boe/d. Map from JX Nippon. Layang is about 7km east of the producing Helang Gas Field in Block SK10…
Energy XXI Gulf Coast (EGC) has spudded its first well of the year at West Delta 30 off the coast of Louisiana, as the company announced an 18% workforce reduction. Image of West Delta operations…
Lukoil has completed the fifth production well for the Vladimir Filanovsky field in the Caspian Sea, and is constructing a sixth well to be used for water injection. Photo source: Lukoil The…
Erin Energy is expecting to double its production by 6000-7000 b/d with help from the Oyo field offshore Nigeria, as the company plans to accelerate drilling in the area. The Pacific Bora, from Pacific Drilling…
Italian giant Eni has submitted its proposal to the Bureau of Ocean Management (BOEM) for a drilling program offshore Alaska, from the man-made island, Spy Island Drillsite (SID) in the Beaufort Sea. Map of SID…
Faroe Petroleum has announced positive results from its Brasse appraisal well in the Norwegian North Sea, confirming Brasse as a commercial discovery. The firm says it now plans to perform a drill stem test (DST) and potentially side track the well…
Odfjell Drilling signed a contract with Wellesley Petroleum for one firm exploration well, plus an optional well testing and sidetrack, on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) using Odfjell Drilling's Deepsea Bergen semisubmersible. Drilling…
TAQA Bratani has awarded Odfjell Drilling a contract for platform drilling and maintenance services on five of its platforms in the UK North Sea. The contract period is two years, with additional yearly options. The contract is planned to start Q3 2017…
Norwegian oil firm Statoil is set to take over BP's mantle in Australia's Great Australian Bight after agreeing a swap deal with the oil major. BP dropped its plans for drilling two deepwater wells in the area after a tussle with Australia's…