BP prolongs Noble jack-up rig’s assignment in North Sea

Offshore drilling contractor Noble Corporation has tucked a contract extension under its belt for one of its jack-up rigs with the UK-headquartered oil major, BP. Thanks to this deal, the rig will continue carrying out operations in the UK sector of the North Sea.

The addition of this one-well option to the work scope of the Noble Innovator ultra-harsh environment jack-up rig comes with an estimated duration of 90 days, which means that the rig is now expected to remain contracted into December 2024.

Noble and BP also agreed to amend and expand the options structure included in the contract. As a result, it now contains options to extend the contract by up to six additional wells at pre-agreed day rates.

The Noble Innovator rig is currently working for the UK oil major in the North Sea, thanks to the award of a one-year contract by BP in December 2022 at a day rate of $135,000, with a one-year option at a higher day rate. 

Blake Denton, Noble Corporation’s SVP – Marketing & Contracts, commented: “We are excited to get this opportunity to continue building on our relationship with BP and to contribute to UK energy security by delivering efficient and responsible offshore operations.”

This jack-up rig was previously known as Maersk Innovator. However, after the business combination between offshore drilling contractors, Noble Corporation and Maersk Drilling, which was completed in October 2022, creating “a new and dynamic leader in offshore drilling,” all rigs in Maersk Drilling’s fleet became part of the Noble fleet with newly assigned names.

The 2003-built Noble Innovator jack-up rig is of Gusto MSC CJ 70 – 150 MC design. Constructed at Hyundai Heavy Industries Ulsan in Korea, the rig can accommodate 120 people.