Offshore deepwater drilling contractor Seadrill has received notification from British oil giant BP to begin preparations to return the West Capricorn semi-submersible drilling rig back in operation.
The 2011-built West Capricorn rig is under a long-term contract with the UK oil major operating in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
Seadrill said on Wednesday that the rig would remain on an extended standby rate until returning to normal contractual day rates on July 1, 2017.
Originally, the rig was signed on a five-year contract starting in July 2012 and ending in July 2017 for an operating dayrate of $486,000. In March 2015, the contract was increased by an additional $40,000 per day and extended by two years, ending in July 2019.
However, in May 2016 the West Capricorn was down-manned and placed on the extended standby rate of $316,000 per day.
In late June 2016, the two companies reached an agreement for the rig to remain on the extended standby rate. At the time, Seadrill and BP expected the warm stacked rig to return to work at the full operating rate of $526,000 per day in April 2017. The return date was later pushed back to late 2017.
Offshore Energy Today Staff