Total takes on Vantage rig for Gabon drilling

Offshore driller Vantage Drilling has secured a drilling contract for its jack-up rig the Topaz Driller with Total in Gabon. 

The oil major will use the rig over a nine-month term. Total will have additional optional periods to extend the drilling contract.

This is the second contract Vantage has managed to score for the Topaz Driller in West Africa in a short time frame. The rig also has a contract with New Age in Cameroon, where it will be drilling appraisal wells at the Etinde block in the second quarter of 2018.

Built in 2009, Topaz Driller last year worked for Ophir Energy in Thailand and for Petronas Carigali in Indonesia. The contract with Petronas started in the second half of 3Q 2017 with end date in 1Q 2018.

Commenting on the contract with Total, Ihab Toma, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “We are very pleased to announce this contract with Total for the Topaz Driller in Gabon. This contract will provide continuity for the Topaz in West Africa, and further justifies our mobilization of the Topaz Driller from Asia to the region. The Topaz continues to prove that Vantage is a leader in safety and operational performance. We look forward to continuing to work for our esteemed client, Total.”

While Vantage Drilling did not say when the Total contract would begin, the company has shared its latest fleet status update online, in which one can see that the rig will start working for Total in direct continuation of the New Age deal, some time in the late third quarter of the year. The company did not reveal the financial details of the deal, either.

Offshore Energy Today has reached out to Vantage, seeking more info on the Total deal. We will update the article if and when Vantage responds.

Offshore Energy Today Staff