OMV preparing to kick off drilling ops with Transocean rig

OMV Norge, a subsidiary of Austria’s oil and gas company OMV, has received consent from Norway’s offshore safety regulator for exploration drilling in the Norwegian Sea, using one of Transocean’s semi-submersible rigs.

The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) recently gave OMV consent for exploration drilling in blocks 6607/3 and 6607/6 in the Norwegian Sea. The prospect, Velocette, is located in production licence 1016, which was awarded on 1 March 2019 and is valid until 1 March 2026.

OMV holds an ownership interest of 40 per cent and acts as the operator of the licence, while its partners are Inpex Idemitsu Norge (40 per cent) and Longboat Energy Norge (20 per cent).

The water depth at the location is around 475 metres and the consent covers the drilling of the well 6607/3-1 S, which will be carried out with the Transocean Norge rig, thanks to a 17-well contract, which the rig secured in September 2022.

The contract at day rates between $350,000 and $430,000 was awarded after two oil and gas companies, Wintershall Dea and OMV, entered into an exclusive partnership with Transocean for the use of the Transocean Norge rig for the drilling of all firm and additional potential wells in the period 2023 to 2027. Transocean recently got a one-well extension with Wintershall Dea for this rig.

The Transocean Norge sixth-generation Moss Maritime CS60 semi-submersible rig was constructed at Jurong Shipyard in Singapore. This rig can accommodate 150 people and its maximum drilling depth is 40,000 ft.