Eni picks ADES rig for Egypt drilling

ADES International Holding has been awarded a contract by Eni IEOC, the Egyptian subsidiary of Italian oil major Eni, for a new drilling campaign offshore Egypt.

ADES is a London-listed company providing offshore and onshore oil and gas drilling and production services in the Middle East and Africa through its subsidiaries.

The contract was awarded by Belayim Petroleum Co. (Petrobel), a joint venture between Eni IEOC and Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC), for a three-month drilling campaign to be led by ADES’ offshore jack-up drilling rig, Admarine 88. The contract has the scope to be extended on a well-by-well basis thereafter, ADES added.

Petrobel has also renewed an existing contract for ADES’ Admarine V offshore jack-up rig for a six-month period on a call out basis, following its recent expiry, with an option to extend the contract for a further six months. Both contracts were chartered for work on Petrobel-Eni concessions in Egypt’s Gulf of Suez.

ADES has also entered a farm-in agreement for its Admarine VIII offshore jack-up rig with Fanar Petroleum Company, under the umbrella of its existing contract with the South Abu Zenima Petroleum Company. The farm-in agreement’s planned scope of work will see the rig perform a FRAC job on the concession’s North July well to improve its productivity. Work is expected to start before the end of July 2017.

Commenting on the contract awards, Dr. Mohamed Farouk, Chief Executive Officer of ADES International Holding, said: “Eni and other major international oil companies operating in our present-day geographies of Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Egypt appreciate the exceptional value for money we offer by deploying fit-for-purpose refurbished legacy rigs and world-class crews to assets in shallow, non-harsh environments.”