Offshore drilling contractor Seadrill has won more work for its rigs in the US Gulf of Mexico which added to the $0.5 billion in backlog won after the end of the third quarter of 2021.
The company said in its market update that it won new contract awards for its rigs during the third quarter of 2021, contributing $145 million to the backlog.
Seadrill added that the total backlog as of September 30, 2021, was at $2.1 billion. Worth noting, in the period after the third quarter of 2021, Seadrill added over $0.5 billion to its backlog.
Just recently the offshore driller won contracts with Petrobras for the West Carina and West Tellus rigs, which will work on the Búzios field off Brazil.
But apart from those two deals, Seadrill also secured work for two more rigs in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Seadrill’s said in the market update that the Sevan Louisiana semi-submersible rig was awarded a one firm well contract with Eni in the US Gulf of Mexico.
The contract will start in late December 2021 and end in late May 2022. Eni has an additional option under the contract which would see the rig continue working for the Italian major until October 2022.
The Sevan Louisiana is currently working for Walter Oil & Gas, also in the Gulf of Mexico. The contract will end by December 2021, but it could be extended until January 2022.
The second rig that won a deal in the Gulf of Mexico was the West Neptune drillship. Namely, the drillship will continue its work with LLOG which exercised an option adding $10 million in the backlog.
The drillship started drilling operations on LLOG’s third Buckskin development well located in the US Gulf of Mexico back in September. The initial firm contract for the rig was signed until May 2022 with options until August 2022.
Following that deal, the West Neptune is already booked for 90 days with Talos until November 2022, contributing $26 million in the backlog. The rig previously worked for Talos on the Tornado field.
“The offshore drilling industry has experienced a period of turbulence in recent times and many companies have undertaken significant corporate changes to align to a new market environment. While market conditions are improving, further asset rationalization and market consolidation are needed to provide a more secure footing for offshore drillers to grow value for their stakeholders,” Stuart Jackson, Seadrill CEO, stated.
To remind, Seadrill is currently under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. It has recently received a confirmation for its reorganization plan from the US Bankruptcy Court.
The company is expecting to emerge from bankruptcy early in 2022, a bit later than the initial expectation of that happening in the fourth quarter of this year. Seadrill also appointed a brand new seven-member board of directors ahead of its Chapter 11 emergence.
For more information visit www.seadrill.com
