Keppel FELS Delivers ‘Discovery Triumph’ Rig Ahead of Schedule

Keppel FELS Limited (Keppel FELS) has delivered its first KFELS Super A Class jackup rig to the Luxembourg-headquartered Discovery Offshore S.A. Discovery Offshore, a drilling contractor focused on ultra high-specification jackups is managed by NASDAQ-listed Hercules Offshore, Inc.

Named Discovery Triumph at a ceremony yesterday, the first KFELS Super A Class jack-up has been delivered 46 days ahead of schedule and with a perfect safety record.

The ultra high-specification jack-up rig has been designed for the harsh environmental conditions of the UK sector of the North Sea. According to Keppel, the rig’s enhanced leg design incorporates “Keppel’s proven and reliable high capacity rack and pinion jacking system which ensures that the rig is able to jack up and stand firm in a secure and safe manner even in challenging environments”.

Wong Kok Seng, Managing Director (Offshore), Keppel Offshore & Marine and Managing Director, Keppel FELS said, “In developing the KFELS Super A Class, we have brought together the winning features of our proven jackup rig designs to provide operators with a robust and cost-effective drilling rig for harsh environments and cold climate areas. We are pleased that Discovery Offshore has selected this design for their first two harsh environment rigs.

“Although it is a new design, our expertise and strong engineering, construction and project management experience has enabled us to deliver it ahead of schedule while achieving an excellent safety record. We look forward to delivering the second KFELS Super A Class to Discovery Offshore just as efficiently.”

Developed by Keppel FELS’ R&D arm, Offshore Technology Development (OTD), the KFELS Super A Class is an enhancement of the successful and proven KFELS A Class design. Discovery Triumph has been customised to meet the requirements of Discovery Offshore and is capable of operating in water depths of 400 feet and drilling depths of 35,000 feet.

 John T. Rynd, CEO of Hercules Offshore added, “With the strong demand for rigs capable of working in the North Sea, we believe the KFELS Super A Class is a value proposition rig with leading performance compared to ultra high specification jack-ups of its class. It provides higher variable load, better drilling capabilities, better cantilever load performance and a larger deck space. Keppel-designed rigs have a strong track record of being industry benchmarks and we are confident that Discovery Triumph will be just as successful and exceed the expectations and requirements of all our customers.

“As this North Sea-compliant rig is able to operate efficiently in virtually all parts of the world outside Norway and the Arctic, we also see many opportunities for it to be deployed in other parts of the world to generate maximum utilisation. With another KFELS Super A Class rig about to join Discovery Triumph later this year, we are well positioned to become a strong player in harsh environment drilling.”

Keppel FELS is currently building another KFELS Super A Class jackup rig for Discovery Offshore as well as another three for Ensco.

For greater operational safety, the KFELS Super A Class is equipped with the state-of-the-art pinion overload detection, rack phase difference detection, and brake failure and overload protection devices. In addition to having strong drilling capabilities and cantilever load performance, the KFELS Super A Class has a two million pound hook load drilling system and includes a spacious deck and amenities to accommodate 150 men.