Vietnam: Essar Oilfields Services Ltd. Bags $40 M Drilling Contract

Essar Oilfields Services Limited (EOSL) a wholly owned subsidiary of ESPLL, has been awarded its first contract outside India, valued at approx US$ 40 million by Vietsovpetro JV (VSP), an E&P company operating in Vietnam, for drilling a 4,800-m offshore well.

EOSL won the contract amidst stiff competition from international drilling contractors like Transocean, Diamond Offshore, Pride International and Neptune Marine Drilling.

Mr. Ankur Gupta, CEO, EOSL commented “This contract demonstrates the confidence of international oil companies in the capabilities of the Wildcat in meeting their HPHT drilling requirements. A six-member team from VSP visited the Essar Wildcat in March and found the rig, its crew, HSE practices, organization and management meeting its stringent requirements”.

Also, commenting on the contract, V Ashok, Director- ESPLL, said: “Essar Wildcat has demonstrated its drilling capability in India and is now poised to set benchmarks internationally. Our state-of-the-art rig has the capability to negotiate water depths of 600 metres and drill up to 7,500 metres. We would have invested up to US$ 1 billion in this business after the delivery of the two jack up rigs”.

Essar Wildcat has followed a structured approach to implement best HSE practices on the rig, through the implementation of Essar Rig Operation Management System (EROMS) based on the ISO model. EOSL seeks to improve performance on an ongoing basis through continuous training on the rig, using in-house training programmes, developed in line with the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC). The achievement is significant with the committed approach and dedication of the diverse teams onboard the Wildcat.

Essar Wildcat has received excellent recommendations for an HSE (Health Safety and Environment) audit carried out by the International Risk Control Asia (IRCA), an international certification body, through an audit commissioned by GSPC. The Essar Wildcat is also being offered to ONGC for its upcoming three year charter hire tender.

EOSL owns and operates one Semi Submersible rig and 12 land rigs. In order to widen its presence in this field, it has also placed orders with ABG Shipyard Ltd India for two jack up rigs.

[mappress]

Source: Essar, May 20, 2010;