Noble rig quartet’s drilling gigs contribute to total backlog of $5.8 billion

U.S. offshore drilling contractor Noble Corporation has won drilling assignments for four floaters with Tullow in Ghana, Petronas in Suriname, Shell in the Americas, an undisclosed firm in the U.S. Gulf, and Chevron in Australia.

After its merger with Diamond Offshore, Noble’s backlog stood at $6.2 billion, compared to $4.2 billion in Q2 2024 and $4.7 billion last year. This has now changed as the firm’s backlog as of February 17, 2025, stands at $5.8 billion.

The rig owner’s Noble Venturer drillship got hold of a six-well campaign with Tullow in Ghana, which is expected to begin in May 2025 with a total contract value of $171 million. After the first two wells, taking around 120 days to complete, the contract will be suspended at zero rates until the end of 2025 to perform a planned special period survey (SPS) maintenance period, including thruster replacement.

Afterward, the contract will resume in January 2026 for the remaining four firm wells, which are estimated to take 240 days. The deal also includes three additional options of two wells estimated at 120 days each. The rig recently wrapped up the drilling operations at the Sagittarius 1-X well for Rhino Resources and moved to the next prospect.

The 2014-built Noble Venturer drillship can operate in water depths of 12,000 feet (3.66 kilometers), and its maximum drilling depth is 40,000 feet (12.19 kilometers).

The U.S. giant’s Noble Developer semi-submersible rig has been hired on a three-well contract with Petronas in Suriname. This assignment is due to begin in June 2025 with an estimated duration of 200 days and a total contract value of approximately $84 million, including mobilization, demobilization, and additional services.

Upon the completion of this job, the rig will embark on a 180-day contract with Shell for work in the Americas, scheduled to commence in Q3 2026 with a firm contract value of approximately $70 million, including mobilization and demobilization.

With a maximum drilling depth of 40,000 feet, the Noble Developer rig is a DSS-21 column-stabilized, dynamically positioned semi-submersible rig capable of operating in water depths up to 10,000 feet (around 3,048 meters).

The offshore drilling contractor’s Noble Globetrotter I drillship has secured a deal in the U.S. Gulf for one firm well with up to six optional wells, the first of which was exercised, comprising a total potential duration of around 200 days and a total contract value of $70 million if all options get used.

Previously, the rig worked for Shell in the U.S. Gulf, thanks to a contract for 70 days of plug and abandonment work at a day rate of $375,000. The 2011-built Noble Globetrotter I drillship has a maximum drilling depth of 40,000 feet and can operate in water depths of up to 10,000 feet.

Noble also landed an extension for the Ocean Apex semi-submersible rig with Chevron in Australia for a minimum of 37 additional days. The semi-submersible is currently on contract with Santos until May 2025, when it is due to begin its assignment with Chevron, which is set to end in July 2025.

With a drilling depth capability of up to 30,000 feet (about 9,144 meters), the 1976-built Ocean Apex rig, which had an upgrade in 2014, has a water depth capacity of up to 6,000 feet (around 1,829 meters).

Robert Eifler, Noble’s CEO, commented: “We have also had a number of important contract wins recently which collectively have augmented our revenue coverage for 2025 and 2026. Integration is progressing well with over half of the $100 million targeted synergies realized to date.

“Our recent decision to retire the cold stacked drillships Pacific Meltem and Pacific Scirocco reflects our commitment to cost discipline, focusing resources on our core active fleet. I would like to thank all of our employees for your continued focus and dedication through this exciting growth journey for our business.”