Equinor gets clearance to use Odfjell Drilling-managed rig at its North Sea field

September 23, 2025, by Melisa Cavcic

Norway’s state-owned energy giant Equinor has obtained the Norwegian authorities’ go-ahead for activities in the Norwegian North Sea, which will be carried out with a semi-submersible rig managed by Odfjell Drilling and owned by Northern Ocean.

Deepsea Bollsta; Source: Odfjell Drilling

The Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority (Havtil) has given Equinor its consent to deploy the Deepsea Bollsta rig for plugging, drilling, and completion of wells on the Visund Sør field in the northern part of the North Sea, 10 kilometers northeast of the Gullfaks C platform.

Located in water depths of 290 meters, the field, which was discovered in 2008, was approved in 2011. The field’s plan for development and operation (PDO) enabled it to be developed with a subsea template tied to Gullfaks C, enabling production to start in 2012.

As previously reported by Offshore Energy, the rig began its two-year firm assignment with Equinor at the end of August 2025. This deal comes with five optional one-year extension periods, which the Norwegian state-owned player can use to prolong the rig’s contract.

The Norwegian authorities’ latest consent comes shortly after Equinor received the all-clear to embark on permanent plugging and abandonment of wells 31/3-Q-21 and 31/2-X-23 with the same rig at the Troll field in the North Sea.

The 2020-built Deepsea Bollsta sixth-generation semi-submersible rig is of Moss CS60E design and can accommodate 140 people. The semi-sub can carry out operations in both benign and harsh environments at water depths of up to 3,000 meters.