Shell takes warm-stacked Maersk drillship for Brunei well

Offshore drilling contractor Maersk Drilling has secured a contract from Brunei Shell Petroleum for the 7th generation drillship Maersk Viking to drill one deepwater exploration well offshore Brunei Darussalam.

The contract is expected to start in March 2021, with an estimated duration of 35 days, the rig owner said on Wednesday.

The firm contract value is approximately $9 million, including additional services provided and a mobilisation fee.

The contract also includes an additional one-well option.

Maersk Viking is a high-spec ultra-deepwater drillship which was delivered in 2013.

It is currently warm-stacked in Johor, Malaysia after completing a drilling campaign in the Bay of Bengal earlier this year.

Morten Kelstrup, COO, Maersk Drilling, said: “We’re happy to get this opportunity to add further to our great relationship with BSP. Our jack-up rig Maersk Convincer has been operating offshore Brunei Darussalam for several years now, and our performance has been recognised by Shell as Jack-up of the Year in both 2018 and 2019.

“I’m certain that Maersk Viking with its high-spec capabilities in combination with our fantastic crew will add even more value to our strong collaboration with BSP”.

In related news, Shell has recently terminated its contract for the Aban Offshore-owned jack-up drilling rig operating for the company in Brunei.