Another Velesto jack-up rig ready for five more years of drilling ops with SPS out of the way

Malaysia-based Velesto Energy, a multinational provider of services for the upstream oil and gas industry through a fleet of six wholly owned premium jack-up drilling rigs and two hydraulic workover units, has wrapped up the mandatory five-yearly special periodical survey (SPS) for one of its jack-up rigs on time, thus, the rig will go to Sarawak to continue its drilling assignment with an affiliate of the Southeast Asian country’s energy giant Petronas.

According to the rig owner, the NAGA 6 jack-up rig has completed its five-year SPS at Labuan Shipyard in Labuan. Velesto explained that the SPS scope of work encompassed essential class recertification, upgrades, repairs, and maintenance such as underwater inspection in lieu of dry docking (UWILD), drilling equipment system maintenance, well control equipment recertification, marine system maintenance, pipe racking system VFD upgrade, zone management system upgrade, CCTV system upgrade, NOVOS hardware installation, and some piping and steel renewal.

As part of the upgrades and maintenance process, all mobile offshore drilling units (MODUs) need to renew their main classification certificates every five years, through the special periodical survey, which is conducted to ensure the rig’s systems can increase uptime and keep the crew safe. These five-year classification requirements are portrayed as a critical and specialized work scope that involves detailed structural investigation and various inspections to ensure structural watertight integrity.

Megat Zariman Abdul Rahim, President of Velesto Energy, commented: “We are proud to have completed this project on schedule in Labuan with the support of local partners. This effort highlights our commitment to advancing Malaysia’s oil and gas sector and enhancing local expertise, which is essential for the industry’s long-term growth.”

After completing the SPS, the NAGA 6 rig is set to mobilize for operations in Sarawak, continuing its contract with Petronas Carigali, which was awarded in March 2024 and covers drilling operations from February 2024 to February 2026. In addition, a letter of extension was secured in March 2024 for the same rig trio, covered by the deal, which entails NAGA 2 and NAGA 4 jack-ups aside from NAGA 6.

The NAGA 6 rig’s SPS follows the completion of the same five-year classification requirement for the NAGA 2 jack-up in August 2024 before the rig headed to Sarawak to work on its development drilling campaign with Petronas Carigali. With a drilling depth capability of 30,000 feet, Velesto’s NAGA 6 premium independent-leg cantilever rig has a rated operating water depth of 375 feet. 

Recently, Velesto also secured a letter of award (LoA) for the NAGA 3 rig from Thang Long Joint Operating Company, which was expected to enable the jack-up to carry out operations in Vietnam from September to November 2024.