Noble scores $1.3 billion in rig deals and enters Norway’s floater drilling scene

January 26, 2026, by Melisa Cavcic

U.S.-headquartered offshore drilling contractor Noble Corporation has picked up new assignments for nine drilling rigs in its fleet, including a job for one of its semi-submersible units, which enables it to make its entrance into the Norwegian harsh environment floater market.

Noble's Noble GreatWhite, former Ocean GreatWhite rig; Source: Green Yard Feda — Noble’s Noble GreatWhite, former Ocean GreatWhite rig; Source: Green Yard FedaFeda

While revealing a new set of contract awards for 9 rigs comprising approximately $1.3 billion of backlog, Noble explained that these deals encompass a three-year contract for the Noble GreatWhite harsh environment semi-submersible rig, expected to expand the firm’s existing presence on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) into the harsh environment floater market.

The rig’s deal is with Aker BP for operations off the coast of Norway, which are expected to begin in Q2 2027, representing approximately $473 million of total contract value, including mobilization fee and excluding integrated services and bonus potential.

The long-term job marks Noble GreatWhite’s first campaign in Norway, said to mark a significant step in expanding the rig owner’s presence on the NCS. Noble anticipates around $160 million of capital expenditures associated with reactivation and contract preparation activities in preparation for this campaign.

Robert W. Eifler, President and Chief Executive Officer of Noble, commented: “These important backlog additions indicate a strong and broad-based demand for deepwater drilling on a multi-year basis. Additionally, the redeployment of four currently idle deepwater rigs should drive a meaningful utilization improvement across our fleet, with 92% of our 24 marketed floaters now contracted compared to 75% in our prior fleet status report.

“While these programs will present incremental one-time capital expenditure requirements in 2026, we expect them to help drive significantly increased fleet EBITDA and free cash flow in future years, which will be supported by a material reduction in capital expenditure beyond 2026. We look forward to expanding our scale in Norway while continuing to focus on reliable service quality and execution for all of our customers.”

According to the rig owner, the Noble Gerry de Souza drillship has won a two-year drilling contract, with up to three years of optional extensions, with Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria (Offshore East) (Esso), an ExxonMobil affiliate. The operations are targeted for mid-2026, subject to regulatory approvals and conditions.

The project is expected to add an estimated $292 million to Noble’s backlog, resuming operations through PIDWAL, the firm’s Nigerian joint venture with Derotech. The rig owner plans to upgrade the drillship for managed pressure drilling (MPD) ahead of this program.

ExxonMobil Guyana has also handed out two additional rig years of backlog under the commercial enabling agreement (CEA) in Guyana, which has been assigned evenly across four drillships – Noble Sam Croft, Noble Don Taylor, Noble Tom Madden, and Noble Bob Douglas – extending each rig through February 2029.

The Noble BlackRhino drillship has secured a contract for one workover well with Beacon Offshore Energy in the U.S. Gulf, scheduled to start in March 2026 with an estimated duration of 50 days. The assignment entails an option for an additional well with an estimated duration of 100 days.

The Noble Endeavor semi-submersible rig has landed an 11-well contract with an undisclosed operator in South America, estimated to commence in late 2026 at a day rate of $300,000 plus mobilization and demobilization fees with the potential for additional revenue from a performance incentive provision.

The Noble Developer semi-submersible rig has obtained a three-well contract with an estimated duration of 240 days with BP in Trinidad, scheduled to kick off in Q1 2027 at a day rate of $375,000. The deal includes options for up to three additional wells with an anticipated combined duration of 240 days.

In addition, the previously announced three-year contract with TotalEnergies in Suriname that was formerly assigned to the Noble Developer has been transferred to the Noble Discoverer semi-submersible rig.

“On a combined basis, we anticipate that these contract awards will entail approximately $50 million of contract preparation capital expenditure for 2026 in addition to the Noble GreatWhite program,” highlighted Noble.