Tullow hires Maersk drillship in four-year contract

Danish offshore driller Maersk Drilling has been awarded a four-year contract for the deep-water drillship Maersk Venturer by Tullow in Ghana.

The contract, which was signed December 2017, is expected to start in February 2018 and covers development drilling on the Jubilee and TEN fields offshore Ghana, the driller informed on Tuesday.

The 2014-built Maersk Venturer is currently in transit for the job offshore Ghana, Maersk added.

Lars Ostergaard, Chief Commercial Officer of Maersk Drilling, said: ”I am very pleased that Maersk Drilling will be mobilizing another deepwater rig for this significant job in a strategically important region. It is our first contract with Tullow Ghana and it is a testament to our successful operational track record in Ghana.”

Maersk Rigworld Ghana, Maersk Drilling’s joint venture with Rigworld International Services, will be providing local services in connection with the operation. According to Maersk, the joint venture has expanded the range of locally available goods and services significantly since the partnership was founded in 2015, and will further expand its network of local suppliers over the course of the new contract.

“After more than 2.5 years of operation in Ghana with Maersk Voyager, Maersk Drilling now operates with over 50 percent local staff and a wide network of local suppliers. We are very proud to work in Ghana and appreciate the opportunity to make use of the ever increasing capabilities within the Ghanaian indigenous sector,” says Østergaard.

Kofi Abban, founder and CEO of Rigworld Group, said: “Maersk Drilling is a highly valuable partner for Rigworld, and we’re excited that they are expanding their footprint in Ghana with the new contract with Tullow Ghana. The contract marks yet another step in a successful collaboration that enables us to utilize each other’s capabilities and add mutual value.”