Rig poised to seek drilling gigs across continents as Vantage gets marketing rights

Vantage Drilling International, a Bermuda-exempted offshore drilling contractor, has secured a marketing deal for a newbuild ultra-deepwater drillship, owned by Eldorado Drilling, an offshore drilling player backed by a group of Norwegian investors.

The marketing agreement with Eldorado Drilling will enable Vantage to market the seventh-generation Dorado, former West Dorado, newbuild ultra-deepwater drillship for drilling opportunities spanning continents by pursuing assignments in Africa, the Mediterranean, Asia, and Australasia.

Ihab Toma, CEO of Vantage Drilling, commented: “We are delighted to have entered into this agreement with Eldorado Drilling and we look forward to successfully placing the rig in operation.  The Dorado is one of the last delivered 7th generation drillships – an advanced-capability drillship designed to operate in water depths of up to 12,000 feet. This new agreement further demonstrates the rig owners’ confidence in Vantage as a most reliable and trusted partner to market and operate their assets.”

The drillship was originally ordered in 2013 by Seadrill before the order got canceled in the wake of the offshore drilling contractor’s restructuring quest in 2018. After Eldorado Drilling bought the rig from Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) in 2023, the drillship was delivered last year. This enabled the rig to embark on its first journey from Geoje to Labuan, Malaysia.

Afterward, Diamond Offshore, now part of Noble Corporation, won a contract for the rig’s marketing rights and made a deal with the owner of the Tidal Action drillship to market its rig in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Two months later, Hanwha Drilling awarded Brazil’s Ventura Offshore the exclusive marketing rights for the same drillship.

The marketing agreement for the Dorado drillship comes after Vantage created a new joint venture (JV), known as TEVA Ship Charter (TEVA), with TotalEnergies to acquire another drillship working off the coast of Congo.

The drilling player’s Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) recently widened his role at the company by becoming the firm’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) as well.