Maersk Drilling picks up another extension from Aker BP

Danish offshore drilling company Maersk Drilling has won another one-well contract from Aker BP for the Maersk Integrator low-emission rig.

Maersk Drilling said on Thursday that it received an additional one-well contract from Aker BP for the Maersk Integrator in direct continuation of its previously announced work scope.

Under the new contract, the rig will move to the Ula field offshore Norway to drill the Ula F – Producer 1 well.

The contract has an estimated duration of 85 days and is expected to start in April 2021. The contract value is approximately $21.6 million, excluding integrated services provided and a potential performance bonus.

To remind, Maersk Integrator is contracted under the terms of the frame agreement that Maersk Drilling and Aker BP entered into in 2017 as part of the Aker BP jack-up alliance which also includes Halliburton.

The alliance uses a shared incentives model, thereby securing mutual commitment to collaborate and drive digital initiatives to reduce waste and deliver value. Contracts under the alliance are based on market-rate terms but add the possibility of an upside for all parties, based on delivery and performance.

Morten Kelstrup, COO of Maersk Drilling, said: “We are pleased to add one more well to Maersk Integrator’s work scope for Aker BP in 2021.

“Our alliance with Aker BP and Halliburton is enabling new ways of working as one team across the value chain, and our close collaboration also allows greater flexibility in future well planning, so additional wells can be committed to as plans mature.

“We have achieved impressive efficiency gains in the alliance, and this also translates into a reduction of the CO2 emissions associated with drilling. The upgrades currently being performed on Maersk Integrator will improve our emissions profile even further”.

Maersk Integrator already won several extensions with Aker BP this year. The first one was awarded in January.

Under the extension, the rig would drill two wells on the Ivar Aasen field with work expected to begin in October 2020. The extension has an estimated duration of 93 days and a contract value of $25.5 million. The contract also includes an additional one-well option.

The second extension was awarded in July. The one-well deal is for drilling of the K-2B development well on the Tambar field offshore Norway. The work is expected to start in February 2021 and last for 73 days. The contract value is around $18.5 million.

As for the rig, Maersk Integrator is an ultra-harsh environment CJ70 XLE jack-up rig, designed for year-round operations in the North Sea.

It was delivered in 2015 and is currently finalising its scheduled special periodic survey offshore Norway. The rig is further undergoing a series of upgrades to turn it into a hybrid, low-emission rig before expectedly moving to the Ivar Aasen field for Aker BP this month.