WATCH: Odfjell rig all spruced up for 5-year North Sea gig with Aker BP

A semi-submersible rig forming part of Odfjell Drilling’s fleet has undergone maintenance ahead of its contract with Aker BP in the North Sea.

While confirming that the Deepsea Stavanger kicked off its assignment with Aker BP in a social media post, the drilling operator said the rig underwent a comprehensive renewal and significant upgrades during dry docking at Semco Maritime’s Hanøytangen dock as part of its planned 15-year special periodic survey (SPS).

The work is said to have been completed on time, within budget, and without incidents. Odfjell Drilling pointed out that it took the rig 3.5 weeks after leaving its last well location to start its five-year contract with Aker BP. With three out of four SPS projects completed, the drilling contractor is now gearing up for the next challenge with Deepsea Aberdeen.

The 2010-built Deepsea Stavanger rig is a sixth-generation deepwater and harsh environment semi-submersible of an enhanced GVA 7500 design, which is capable of working in water depths of up to 3,000 meters and has a drilling depth capacity of 10,670 meters. It is currently contracted until Q2 2030.

As stated in the firm’s social media post, the rig has been significantly upgraded specifically to meet the five-year challenge at the Yggdrasil project. Based on Odfjell’s 2024 annual report, the work entailed removing potential bottlenecks by adding variable deck load capacity, system efficiency upgrades, and digital synergy upgrades.

Located between Alvheim and Oseberg, Yggdrasil is said to be one of the largest undeveloped projects in the North Sea. Holding several oil and gas fields spread across the Hugin, Fulla, and Munin licence groups, the area is said to contain recoverable resources of approximately 650 million barrels of oil equivalent. Odfjell describes it as a “significant undertaking” ahead for the Deepsea Stavanger.

The rig operator secured a 5-year contract with Aker BP for Yggdrasil in August 2022 for a base contract value in the range of $620 million to $730 million. The contract will see Deepsea Stavanger drilling production wells in the Munin license group in addition to other exploration, appraisal, and infill wells in the Yggdrasil area. Aker BP’s partners in the license are Orlen Upstream Norway and Equinor.

Earlier this month, Aker BP secured a drilling permit for the wellbore 30/11-16 S in production license 873 in the North Sea, where its partners are Equinor and Orlen. This assignment will also be carried out using the Deepsea Stavanger.

According to Odfjell, the rig travelled across the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) during 2024, working on multiple exploration and appraisal projects for Equinor, including some dry wells and others where discoveries were made. As stated, the unit performed well during the year, achieving an average financial utilization for the year of 97%