Maersk Drilling has been awarded a contract from eni Ghana Exploration and Production Ltd., an eni subsidiary, for employment of the newbuild drillship Maersk Voyager. The firm contract period is 3.5 years with an option to extend by one year. The total estimated revenue from the firm contract is USD 545m including mobilisation and escalations. Maersk Voyager will work on the Offshore Cape Three Points (OCTP) Project offshore Ghana with expected commencement in July 2015.

“We are very pleased to be chosen by eni and its partners Vitol and GNPC for this project offshore Ghana and we look forward to working together with the OCTP JV over the next 3.5 years. West Africa has been a strategic focus area for Maersk Drilling, since we embarked on our deepwater expansion, and with this contract we expand our presence in the promising West African deepwater market,” says Claus V. Hemmingsen, CEO in Maersk Drilling and member of the Executive Board in the Maersk Group.

Maersk Voyager is the last in a series of four ultra deepwater drillships in Maersk Drilling’s rig fleet. The rig was delivered on 6 February 2015 from the Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) shipyard in Geoje-Si in South-Korea. The four drillships represent a total investment of USD 2.6bn.

<strong>Facts about the new drillships from Maersk Drilling</strong>

Featuring dual derrick and large subsea work and storage areas, the design allows for efficient well construction and field development activities through offline activities. With their advanced positioning control system, the ships automatically maintain a fixed position in severe weather conditions with waves of up to 11 metres and wind speeds of up to 26 metres per second. Special attention has been given to safety on board the drillships. Equipped with Multi Machine Control on the drill floor, the high degree of automation ensures safe operation and consistent performance. Higher transit speeds and increased capacity will reduce the overall logistics costs for oil companies.

image(c) Maersk drlling