Rig: Velesto Naga 7

Frontier confirms contract for 'UMW Naga 7'

Frontier Oil Corp. will drill two wells in the Calauit oil field off northwest Palawan in the first quarter of next year after signing a USD20 million deal to tap the services of Malaysia’s UMW Offshore Drilling Sdn. Bhd. Frontier president Kristoffer Fellowes said the company had the flexibility to use the ‘UMW NAGA 7’ jack-up rig in other areas within the Philippines, making it an extremely valuable contract to the company. The newly-built ‘UMW NAGA 7’ jack-up rig is capable of drilling to 375 feet of water depth and a total depth of 30,000 feet. Fellowes said the contract covered a period of 120 days, with an option to extend for another 180 days. The ‘UMW Naga 7’ contract, according to Fellowes, was a “game changer” for Frontier. “We are now on the cusp of becoming a producer, an outcome that will catapult us into a period of rapid growth. The company couldn’t be happier,” Fellowes said. UMW Offshore is a wholly-owned subsidiary within UMW Oil & Gas Corp. Berhad.

Newbuild 'UMW Naga 7' jackup secures Philippines contract

UMW OIL & GAS CORPORATION BERHAD (UMW-OG) today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary UMW Offshore Drilling Sdn Bhd (UOD) has received a Letter of Award (LOA) from Frontier Oil Corporation (FRONTIER) for provision of a jack-up rig and associated services in respect to the KJF-1 and KJF-2 Drilling Programme in the KJF Field SC50 Block (formerly Calauit Field), offshore Palawan in the Philippines. The contract will be utilising ‘UMW NAGA 7’, its new-build jack-up drilling rig from CHMI shipyard in Shenzhen, China. The contract is for a duration of 120 days with an option for an extension of a further 180 days and is planned to commence around middle of January, 2015. The contract has a value of approximately US20 million for the firm duration period. UMW-OG President, Rohaizad Darus said, “This new contract for our newly built UMW NAGA 7 underlines our continued commitment to geographical expansion. The earlier contract awarded by NIDO Petroleum Limited for ‘UMW NAGA 5’ opened the door for us into the Philippines market. We hope ‘UMW NAGA 7’ will further solidify our presence in this new emerging and exciting market. Just like our business model in Vietnam, we break into the market and develop it further with more contracts.”