Seadrill’s 2011-built rig is hard at work in North Sea with ConocoPhillips

October 28, 2025, by Melisa Cavcic

A 14-year-old jack-up rig, owned by Seadrill, an offshore drilling contractor, is going full speed ahead with drilling operations at an oil field in the North Sea off the coast of Norway.

West Elara jack-up rig; Source: Seadrill

Seadrill has provided an update on the activities of its 2011-built West Elara jack-up rig, which is currently operating in the Ekofisk field for ConocoPhillips. The rig owner claims that its mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU) stands among the most advanced jack-up rigs in the North Sea, as it was purpose-built for depth, durability, and precision.

Designed to drill up to 35,000 feet, the West Elara rig features Hydril blowout preventers (BOPs) rated to 15,000 psi, a selective catalytic reduction system that is said to cut NOx emissions by up to 95%, and high-capacity Caterpillar C280 engines that deliver reliable performance in even the harshest offshore environments.

“The rig has earned the acknowledgement of compliance from the Petroleum Safety Authority Norway, been named Rig of the Quarter for Q3 2024, and proudly received the Supplier Recognition Award from ConocoPhillips in 2024 — recognising its exceptional operational standards and partnership excellence,” emphasized Seadrill.

This rig, hired in April 2017, has been working for ConocoPhillips since May 2018, according to Seadrill’s fleet status report, which shows that this deal is expected to end in March 2028. Located 300 kilometres southwest of Stavanger in the southern part of the North Sea, the Greater Ekofisk Area consists of three producing fields: Ekofisk, Eldfisk, and Embla.

The production from these fields is transported via the Ekofisk Complex to the receiving terminals in Emden, Germany (gas) and Teesside, UK (oil). The Ekofisk Complex comprises all installations that are connected with bridges on the central Ekofisk field and it serves as a hub for the production from the Ekofisk field itself, and from the other fields in the Greater Ekofisk Area.

The Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy extended the production licenses in the Greater Ekofisk Area from 2028 to 2048. According to ConocoPhillips, Ekofisk was Norway’s first producing field and is also one of the largest on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.

This rig update comes two months after Seadrill’s joint venture (JV) with an affiliate of Angola’s state-controlled oil company Sonangol secured two contracts for a rig duo to undertake drilling work offshore Angola.