Transocean Delays Drillships
By Aiswarya Lakshmi
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Transocean Ltd, the world’s largest offshore driller, has delayed delivery of two new ultra-deepwater drillships, the company announced.
The company amended its drillship construction contracts ($540 million each) with Jurong Shipyard, a subsidiary of Sembcorp Marine, by 24 months. The two drillships are now expected to be delivered in the second quarter of 2019 and the first quarter of 2020, respectively.
Transocean has won contracts worth $109 million from mid-May to mid-June. The amount is the highest for the Swiss-based oil major in 2015 and comes at a time when crude oil prices are at a downward.
The figure is more than twice that reported in May—$52 million—and about five times more than the $22-million average of the first five months of 2015.
According to Transocean’s monthly fleet status report, the GSF Monarch and Transocean Spitsbergen are idle. The Spitsbergen’s well program concluded 45 days early due to efficient performance of the rig; the contract provides for a payment to the company in the event of an early termination.
In May, Transocean announced that it had amended its construction contracts with Keppel FELS to delay delivery of five new jackups. The amendment was in addition to a six-month delay announced in February.