Seadrill is building two new jack-up drilling rigs in China. The company entered into an agreement for construction of the rigs with Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore Co., Ltd (DSIC). The new units are scheduled for delivery in the Q4 2012 and Q1 2013, respectively. The contract calls for project management, drilling and handling tools, spares and capitalized interest. In addition, Seadrill has option agreements for construction of two similar units with DSIC.
The two rigs ordered from Dalian represent the latest generation, high specification jack-up drilling rigs with greater capacities and capabilities than current more conventional units. The units are based on the Friede & Goldman JU2000E design and are suitable for operations worldwide, including the southern North Sea. The units have the capability to operate in water depths up to 400 ft and drill to depths of 30,000 ft. They also offer improved drilling efficiencies with off-line pipe handling, simultaneous operations support and increased accommodation capacity.
In addition, Seadrill has four ultra-deepwater drillships on order from Samsung in South Korea and an option for two more rigs to be declared by the first quarter of 2011. According to reports, the ships are the first newbuild rigs to be outfitted with a seven-ram configuration of the blowout preventer.
