Offshore drilling contractor Maersk Drilling has been awarded contracts with Shell for the provision of the 7th generation drillship Maersk Voyager for drilling services offshore multiple countries.
The rig owner informed on Monday that the contracts are expected to begin in April 2022, with a total firm duration of one year.
The total contract value is approximately $107.5 million, including a mobilisation fee, but excluding integrated services expected to be provided and potential performance bonuses. The contracts include an additional one-year option.
To support a strong operational performance in the campaigns, Maersk Drilling and Shell have agreed to implement the RigFlow solution delivered by Maersk Drilling subsidiary Horizon56 . RigFlow standardises and digitalises the core workflows involved in well construction , including real-time exchange of information between onshore planning units, the offshore drilling teams, and the service companies supporting the operations.
Morten Kelstrup , COO of Maersk Drilling, said: “We’re excited to announce that we will be continuing the excellent collaboration that has now led to seven commitments for our rigs from Shell-affiliated operators in less than two years. This agreement will allow Maersk Voyager to showcase our ability to move swiftly and efficiently between jurisdictions and in this way support Shell with the efficiency gained from being able to plan in the longer term across several different operations.”
Maersk Voyager is a high-spec ultra-deepwater drillship delivered in 2014. According to Maersk Drilling’s fleet status report, the drillship has been under contract with TotalEnergies in Angola/Namibia from January 2021 until March 2022. The rig’s day rate was $200,000.
Kelstrup added: “The highly capable Voyager crew recently drilled at a new world record water depth offshore Angola, and they’re ready to execute this multi-country campaign at the same high level of operational excellence.”
In February 2022, TotalEnergies made a significant discovery of light oil with associated gas on the Venus prospect, located in block 2913B in the Orange Basin off Namibia, using the Maersk Voyager drillship.