Offshore drilling company Borr Drilling has begun the activation of four jack-up rigs despite not having secured contracts for them.
The driller on Wednesday said the move to reactivate four additional jack-ups was made based on recent contracts secured and a rise in customer inquiries-
Borr Drilling said: “Supported by the strong increase in direct customer requests and the material increase in tender activity of approximately 50% year to date, the Board has decided to initiate the activation without having secured firm employment for the four rigs. However, the Board sees several interesting opportunities for employment at attractive rates.”
The Oslo-lised company did not say which rigs exactly are being activated.
Activity is coming back
The offshore drilling company has recently secured commitments for three of its newbuild units and its North Sea based jack-up “Ran”, all of which are currently undergoing (re)activation and have been awarded LOIs. These rigs are expected to begin work in the first half of 2019.
Borr Drilling also said the delivery time for critical equipment was increasing, currently standing at around six months.
“We believe we have seen the trough in equipment prices and as activity is coming back we also expect a tightening of the labor market. Given the improving jack-up market outlook, we are increasingly positive about future contracting opportunities for our modern rigs but emphasize our continued disciplined approach to contracting with focus on opportunities that generate significant positive cash return after activation cost,” Borr Drilling said.