ADES jackup gets more time with QatarEnergy

September 3, 2025, by Dragana Nikše

Advanced Energy Systems (ADES), part of Saudi Arabia-headquartered ADES Holding, has signed a multi-year contract extension with the state-owned QatarEnergy for a jackup rig from its fleet.

The extension for the Aquamarine Driller is for a firm duration of four years, with three additional one-year options, as reported by ADES. The contract value for both firm and additional options is approximately SAR 808 million, or $215 million.

Aquamarine Driller is a jackup rig of Baker Marine Pacific Class 375 design used for water depths of 375 feet, or 114 meters. It was purchased from Vantage Drilling together with two other units in 2021.

This marks the second long‑term award in Qatar this year, following the extension secured for Sapphire Driller in May with North Oil Company (NOC), a joint venture (JV) between QatarEnergy (70%) and TotalEnergies (30%).

In addition to securing extensions, in early August, ADES made an offer to acquire Shelf Drilling. The transaction is expected to close in Q4 2025, after which Shelf will be wholly owned by ADES and delisted from the Oslo Stock Exchange.

As for QatarEnergy, the firm won the Nzombo exploration permit offshore Congo with TotalEnergies and Société Nationale des Pétroles du Congo (SNPC) earlier this week. The partners aim to drill one exploration well by the end of this year.