Fossil energy -Indonesia
Indonesian independent Medco Energi has concluded a deal with China Oilfield Services to charter a new semi-submersible drilling rig as part of a commitment to the fast-track development of its offshore Indonesia discoveries.
The deal involves the deepwater drilling rig Shen Lan Tan Suo (Deepblue Explorer).
It is not clear how many wells the rig will drill for Medco, although sources said the campaign will last around 300 days starting in September.
The likelihood is that the rig will also be used for a development drilling campaign in Natuna Sea Block B.
The rig is being finetuned at Chinese yard China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI) in Haimen city.
The Deepblue Explorer is set to sail to the South China Sea in July to drill one exploration well in the Pearl River Mouth basin before heading to Indonesia to work for Medco.
The rig, which is a CM-SD1000 design, has a mooring system rather than dynamic-positioning system with the drilling package provided by Dutch company Huisman.
Drilling market sources said there is a chance the new semisub will replace an existing ageing semisub, possibly the Nanhai 5, which was bought by CMHI from COSL in 2018.
The new rig is equipped to raise drilling efficiencies by 30% and is suited for operations in the South China Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Middle East and West Africa in water depths of between 300-1000 metres.