Leni Gas & Oil plc today announces a short delay to the start of drilling operations at the Eugene Island Field (“EI-184”) in the US Gulf of Mexico. The current operator of the Ocean Columbia jack-up rig at Eugene Island-51 has had difficulty in withdrawing the legs from the seafloor.
Silt jetting and dredging operations are ongoing to free the legs so that they can be raised in order to allow the rig to be towed to the new location. Once the legs have been successfully retrieved the rig will be released by the current operator and moved approximately 55 kilometres to the EI-184 platform to commence operations on the planned A2ST01 sidetrack.
The Ocean Columbia is a LeTourneau Class 82-SD-C Jack-up rig, built in 1978. The rig is currently owned by Diamond Offshore.
[mappress] Offshore Energy Today Staff, February 7, 2012