Maersk Oil contracts Gulf Drilling Newbuild jackup in Qatar

Gulf Drilling International (GDI) has secured a contract for one of its newbuild jackup rigs the ‘B-341’ (Qatar 2022) which is due to be delivered from Keppel FELS shipyard in Singapore in late 2013. The jackup has been contracted by Maersk Oil Qatar for development drilling work on the Al Shaheen field in Qatar for an initial two year period. The contract follows Maersk Oil’s contacting of another of GDI’s jackup rigs earlier in 2013, the ‘Al Jassra’ rig was hired by Maersk on a four year contract. Maersk Oil signed the contract for the ‘B-341’ (Qatar 2022) jackup alongside a three year contract for a newbuild accommodation jackup with the two contracts combining to total US$205 million.

Atwood Oceanics to sell 'Vicksburg' jackup rig

Atwood Oceanics has announced that the company plans to sell one of its jackup rigs to Gulf Drilling International Ltd. The unit up for sale is the ‘Vicksburg’ jackup rig, which is Atwood’s oldest operational rig having been built originally in 1976. The agreement for the sale of the unit values the rig at US$55.4 million and the sale is expected to close once the ‘Vicksburg’ has completed its current contract in Thailand. The sale of the unit falls in line with the strategy being employed by a number of global rig operators who are looking to alter the structure of their fleets towards high-specification modern assets, through newbuild programmes and the divesting of existing units.

'Al Khor' jackup contracted by JX Nippon for Qatar Drilling

Gulf Drilling International (GDI) has signed a contract with JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Qatar (JX Nippon) for the contracting of the ‘Al Khor’ jackup rig. The ‘Al Khor’ jackup is currently contracted to Shell for drilling operations on the North field in Qatar and has been contracted by JX Nippon from Q2 2014. JX Nippon has contracted the unit to drill the JXQA-1 well which the company has a joint interest in alongside Qatar Petroleum.

Gulf Drilling International takes delivery of the company's 8th jackup rig

Gulf Drilling International (GDI) the Qatar focused offshore rig contractor announced that the company has taken delivery of its 8th jackup drilling rig. The jackup formerly known as the ‘Vicksburg’ was purchased in October 2013 from Atwood Oceanics and has been renamed the ‘Msheireb’ by GDi. The unit will now be towed to Qatar where upon arrival it will enter a shipyard to undergo some upgrade work. After its short shipyard stay the ‘Msheireb’ jackup will begin a five year contract with Occidental Petroleum which was signed in November 2013.

Occidental Petroleum contracts 'Al Wajbah' jackup for a further five years

Gulf Drilling International (GDI) the Qatar focused offshore rig contractor announced that Occidental Petroleum (Oxy) has extended its current contract for the ‘Al Wajbah’ jackup rig operating in Qatar. The unit which is currently under contract with Oxy until the end of 2014 has been contracted for an additional five year period beginning on the 1st January 2015 with a total contract value of QAR830 million (US$227.9 million).

'Al Khor' jackup hits Shell's operational safety targets

Qatar Shell decided to focus on all incidents in order to improve overall Safety at the work place and imbed the philosophy behind it, deeper into the minds of people working for them. That initiative resulted in coining of a new slogan “Goal Zero” five years ago. Goal Zero – stands for Zero incidents in One year. Gulf Drilling International’s rig Al Khor, took the challenge on and set out to achieve that target. On 28th of December 2013, Al Khor met its target of one year without any recordable incidents. That is being celebrated today by SHELL, who drove the initiative and GDI whose people made it possible. This is a moment of great pride for all parties who contributed to the achievement Key enablers were, the STOP Program, the DROPS initiative, coaching and mentoring on the rig, Shell’s incentives scheme, and most of all the rig crews. It goes without saying that they received active and visible support of shore based supervisors with complete ownership taken on by SHELL and GDI Management.

Keppel FELS sells three rigs for US$55 million

Further to the announcement on 18 February 2004, Keppel FELS Ltd (Keppel FELS) has signed an agreement to sell three rigs to a drilling services company for a cash consideration of US$55 million, payable upon delivery expected in end May 2004. The three rigs, the ENSCO 55 jackup and ENSCO 23 and ENSCO 24 platform rigs, are part of the consideration for the construction of a new rig for ENSCO International Incorporated (ENSCO). “Apart from the sale, we are expected to upgrade and refurbish one of the rigs, the ENSCO 55, in one of our shipyards,” said Mr Tong Chong Heong, Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Keppel FELS’ parent company, Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M).

'Msheireb' goes to work for Oxy

Gulf Drilling International (GDI) ,a subsidiary of Gulf International Services (GIS), and Occidental Petroleum of Qatar (Oxy) have jointly announced that the jack-up drilling rig ‘Msheireb’, which was acquired by GDI earlier this year and refurbished, has been accepted by Oxy for drilling operations that are set to commence this week. ‘Msheireb’ will be the 3rd GDI rig currently working for Oxy with the rigs ‘Al Rayyan’ and ‘Al Wajba’ already under contract. Oxy’s President and General Manager Steve Kelly said: “We are pleased to mobilize our third drilling rig provided by GDI to support Oxy’s active development program. He commended GDI for the excellent performance of its rigs and looked forward to continuing to enhance the mutually beneficial relationship between Oxy Qatar and GDI. Mr. Kelly also emphasized the importance of safe operations and expressed confidence that GDI would continue to work with Oxy Qatar to maintain and enhance safety performance as the rig fleet expands.” GDI’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ibrahim J. Al Othman said: “I am pleased to have attained Oxy’s contractual acceptance of the rig and note with pride that Msheireb would be GDI’s 8th jack-up rig to go into service. He added that with three of its eight jack-up rigs now working for Oxy, a fine working relationship has developed with Oxy, as evidenced by the Performance Recognition Award that Oxy gave GDI signifying that GDI’s safety, operational performance and equipment reliability was amongst the best of all rigs working for Oxy worldwide.” Mr. Al Othman further advised: “The refurbishment work has been completed and the rig will mobilize on schedule. The successful on-time commencement of this five year contract, valued at approximately QR865 million, is also very welcome.” ‘Msheireb’ is a very capable rig. It has a 60 feet cantilever outreach; can drill to a depth of 25,000 feet; operate in a water depth of 300 feet; and accommodate 116 persons.

Qatar Petroleum snap up newbuild GDI jackup

Gulf Drilling International Ltd. Q.S.C. (GDI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Gulf International Services (GIS), announced that it has been awarded new contracts by Qatar Petroleum (QP) for the provision of offshore drilling rig services. QP has contracted the newbuild ‘Dukhan’ jackup rig which is expected to be delivered from Keppel FELS Shipyard in Singapore towards the end of Q3 2014. The unit will then be mobilised to Qatar and should start work for QP in offshore Qatar during the Q4 2014. The contract term is five years and valued at QR 1.275 Billion (USD350 million). The ‘Dukhan’ rig was custom built for GDI with features that enable it to work anywhere in Qatar. It is a high-specification, hi-tech rig and accommodates 150 people. The features include a 15,000 psi choke system for well control and can drill wells through 30000ft. and a cantilever that can skid out 75 feet from the edge of the hull to drill wells. Off-line stand building and 7,500 psi mud pumps are another feature that is favoured by clients.

GDI announces new contract award from Qatar Petroleum

Gulf Drilling International Limited (GDI), a subsidiary of Gulf International Services (GIS), the largest oilfield service company in Qatar, announced that they have been awarded a new contract by Qatar Petroleum for a new hi-spec premium jack-up rig starting in the 2nd quarter in 2016. The brand new rig, recently named ‘Halul’, will become the 4th jack-up rig in GDI’s fleet to be under contract to QP, for an initial term of five years and having an estimated contract value of QR1.2 Billion. The other three GDI jack-up rigs under contract to QP are ‘Al Doha’, ‘Al Zubarah’ and ‘Dukhan’. GDI has identified a renowned international shipyard with a rig suitable to QP which will be delivered within the specified time frame and is in the process of finalizing its order. GDI’s chief executive officer, Mr Ibrahim J. Al Othman said: “GDI is pleased to have received this important award from QP which will be starting work mid 2016. This new business generated by “Halul” will support our growth plan in 2016, which will in turn support our long term revenue growth.”. “GDI’s favorable reputation has been earned over time through the strong partnerships that have been forged with all our clients, where flexibility to customize our services to meet the client’s specific requirements has always been emphasized. I must also mention my appreciation and thanks to H.E. Dr. Mohamed Bin Saleh Al-Sada, Minister of Energy and Industry, QP Chairman and Managing Director, for his continuous support to GDI and the respective departments of QP. My thanks also goes to GDI Board of Directors for their guidance and support” Mr. Al Othman added. The key features of the new rig “Halul” will be a 1.5 million pound derrick, 150 man accommodation, 75 foot cantilever outreach, 7,500 horse power mud pumps and other customizations required by QP. Adding another state of the art rig to GDI’s fleet will serve the dual purpose of raising the Company’s technical capabilities while reducing the average age of its fleet. GDI’s versatility will also be enhanced with four of its six cyber rigs capable of operating anywhere within the offshore areas of the State of Qatar. The rig in question is believed to be the ‘Clearwater Jackup TBN 2’, which is currently under construction at KeppelFELS in Singapore and due for delivery in Q1 2016. Clearwater recently sold one its under construction jackups to the Arabian Drilling Company (ADC), which has been renamed ‘AD 70’.

Keppel delivers 'Dukhan' rig to GDI

Keppel FELS Limited (Keppel FELS) has delivered its fourth jackup rig, ‘Dukhan’, to Gulf Drilling International Ltd (GDI) of Qatar nine days ahead of schedule, on budget and with a perfect safety record. ‘Dukhan’ is a high specification rig built to Keppel’s proprietary KFELS B Class design.Keppel FELS has previously delivered three similar jackup rigs to GDI; ‘Al Khor’, ‘Al Zubarah’ and ‘Les-hat’. Customised for GDI with features that enable it to work anywhere in Qatar, ‘Dukhan’ will be chartered to Qatar Petroleum for five years. The KFELS B Class is equipped with larger spud cans for reduced bearing pressure which expands its operational coverage, especially in sea beds where soft soil is predominant. It includes a 15,000 PSI choke system for well control and can drill wells through 30,000ft with a cantilever that can skid out 75ft from the edge of the hull to drill wells. It also features offline stand building and 7,500 PSI mud pumps.

GDI places order for 'Halul' jackup rig with Keppel FELS

Keppel FELS Limited (Keppel FELS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine (Keppel O&M), has secured a contract from Gulf Drilling International Ltd. (GDI) of Qatar to build a repeat high-specification KFELS B Class jackup rig worth USD227 million. As part of the contract, GDI has options for two more KFELS B Class rigs for deliveries in 2017. The new jackup is to be named ‘Halul’ and Keppel FELS has already begun preparations for its scheduled delivery in Q1 2016 during the course of discussions with GDI. Upon delivery, ‘Halul’ will be chartered to Qatar Petroleum for five years. ‘Halul’ is GDI's fifth KFELS B Class jackup rig ordered from Keppel. The fourth rig, ‘Dukhan’, was recently delivered last month. ‘Les Hat’, a similar jackup, was delivered last year and has been successfully operating for GDI in the Middle East, following in the footsteps of sister rigs, ‘AL Khor’ and ‘AL Zubarah’. Customised to GDI's requirements, the new jackup rig will be designed to operate in the higher ambient temperature of the Middle East. The KFELS B Class is equipped with larger spud cans for reduced bearing pressure and expands its operational coverage in more places, especially in sea beds where soft soil is predominant. The rig can drill wells through 30,000 feet with a cantilever that can skid out 70 feet from the edge of the hull to drill wells. It features offline stand building capabilities and 7,500 PSI mud pumps, with accommodation for 150 persons.

'Dukhan' jackup enters service in Qatar

Gulf Drilling International (GDI) a subsidiary of Gulf International Services (GIS) the largest oilfield services company in Qatar, announced today that the new jack-up drilling rig Dukhan has been accepted by its client, Qatar Petroleum, and left NKOM Shipyard at Ras Laffan yesterday in route to its first location. Dukhan is the 9th offshore jack-up rig in GDI's fleet and the 3rd jack-up rig to be under contract to QP, joining the jackup rigs Al Doha and Al Zubarah. GDI took delivery of the rig from Keppel Fels Shipyard in Singapore last August and had it dry towed to Qatar last month. While undergoing final commissioning and testing in NKOM Shipyard, various third party equipment was installed and drill pipe loaded onto the rig to achieve QP's final acceptance. GDI’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ibrahim J. Al Othman said: “I am pleased to see this rig sail out safely to its first well location in Qatar ahead of schedule. This marks the 5th state of the art cyber rig of GDI’s fleet and will serve to further enhance our operational capabilities while lowering the average age of our rigs. The inspection and acceptance process went very smoothly, allowing drilling services to commence early than expected. I want to thank QP for their excellent support and cooperation, which made the early start of drilling operations possible.”