Drillship News

Offshore drilling contractor Transocean said its new eighth-generation drillship Deepwater Titan has started its inaugural contract with supermajor Chevron in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.Built by Singapore's Sembcorp Marine and delivered to Transocean subsidiary Triton Titan GmBH in December 2022, Deepwater Titan is the world’s second eighth-generation drillship, constructed based on the builder’s Jurong Espadon 3T design.The dual-derrick ultra-deepwater drillship is the first-ever unit delivered with two 20…

A deteriorated bollard led to a Valaris drillship breaking away and colliding with a bulk carrier in Pascagoula, Miss. last year, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Thursday.On March 12, 2022, the mobile offshore drilling unit Valaris DS-16 was in the process of being reactivated at the ST Engineering Halter Marine and Offshore Shipyard (STEHMO) when it broke away from the dock in strong winds, drifted across the Bayou Casotte channel and collided with the bulk carrier Akti.

Marijana Sosic, Manager, Technical Marketing at Transocean, discusses some of the outstanding features of the Deepwater Atlas – Built in Singapore at Sembcorp Marine's Jurong Shipyard and flying the Marshall Islands flag – and sister-ship Deepwater Titan , which together represent an investment of more than $2 billion.The Deepwater Atlas was launched this year in Singapore. What, specifically, is so special about it?The Deepwater Atlas is the first of its kind eighth-generation drillship that will offer 20,000 psi well control capabilities and a 3.4 million pound hoisting capacity.

The United States Coast Guard issued the following Marine Safety Alert rergarding Dynamic Positioning Systems.Dynamic positioning (DP) systems1 meeting equipment class 2 (DP2) and equipment class 3 (DP3) have control features and redundancies that are often regarded by the crews of vessels using these systems as infallible. A recently investigated DP incident revealed that a DP system may still have weaknesses, even when the design and testing of the system aims to remove or mitigate those weaknesses through engineering controls.

A Valaris drillship hit the Akti bulk carrier ship on Saturday, after breaking free its moorings near the VT Halter Shipyards and Chevron docks in Pascagoula,  Mississippi. At around 1:30 a.m. Saturday, Coast Guard Sector Mobile watchstanders received a report from the National Response Center of a collision between two vessels. Per the Coast Guard, Valaris' a 752-foot drillship, reportedly broke free of its moorings due to high winds and collided with the Akti bulk carrier. According to photos shared by the Coast Guard…

Subsea technology company Seatools has delivered deep-sea mineral collection equipment for Allseas' Hidden Gem seabed mining ship.Seatools was responsible for the engineering, manufacturing, and qualification of the electronics, instrumentation, and hydraulics for Allseas’ pilot polymetallic nodule collection vehicle. The vehicle will be part of a pilot nodule collection test conducted by Allseas, which is scheduled to take place in 2022 in the Pacific Ocean.Allseas developed…

The 228-meter-long former drillship Vitoria 10000, now renamed Hidden Gem, has this week arrived in Rotterdam, The Netherlands to start its conversion into a subsea mining vessel.The news of the vessel's arrival was shared by The Metals Company (formerly DeepGreen Metals Inc.) whose strategic partner Allseas acquired the Vitoria 10000 in March of 2020, as its configuration is well-suited for modifications that will enable the deployment at sea of a 4.5 kilometer-long riser to bring polymetallic nodules up from the seafloor.In partnership with The Metals Company…

An oil exploration vessel contracted by Malaysian state energy company Petronas that was involved in a standoff with a Chinese survey vessel in the South China Sea left the disputed waters on Tuesday, three security sources and the vessel operator said.Petronas has been conducting exploration activities near an area claimed by Malaysia and Vietnam as well as by China since late last year. In mid-April, the Haiyang Dizhi 8 - the Chinese government survey vessel - started operating in the area, escorted by coast guard and China Maritime Militia vessels.Three American warships and an Australian frigate conducted a joint exercise near the site of Petronas' operations amid the standoff last month.The West Capella…

Australia exploration company Karoon Energy has signed an agreement with the drilling contractor Stena Drilling and oil company Tullow Oil to contract the Stena Forth drillship for Karoon’s Marina-1 exploration well located offshore Peru."The Stena Forth has been contracted to drill one well, being the Marina-1 exploration well, in Karoon’s 40% owned and operated Block Z-38 in the Tumbes Basin in Peru with drilling scheduled to commence early in the 1st quarter 2020," said a press release from Karoon.The Marina-1 well sits in water depth of approximately 350 metres and is targeting a gross prospective resource of 256 million barrels (102 million barrels net to Karoon).In the case of success in Marina-1…

Fugro, the global geo-data specialist, has awarded a contract to Bosch Rexroth to fully maintain and further improve Fugro Synergy’s hydraulic equipment.Fugro has worked with Bosch Rexroth for over a decade to ensure it has the best hydraulic systems and software solutions on board its geotechnical drilling vessel, the Fugro Synergy. Now, they are working together again in order to better prepare for the future.The Fugro Synergy vessel has been in operation since 2009, and is primarily used to drill into the seabed in order to analyse whether it can be safely used as a foundation for structures like wind farms or oil rigs. This ship was built to be effective in the harshest conditions…

Offshore drilling contractor Awilco Drilling has said that the first steel has been cut for its second rig under construction at a Keppel yard."We are pleased to confirm that first steel cutting took place for the lower hull of our new CS60 ECO drilling semi-submersible at KeppelFels shipyard in Nantong, China," said the drilling contractors based in the North Sea oil & gas sector."We expect to also strike steel on the upper hull at KeppelFels in Singapore within December," it said.The new rig is scheduled for delivery in March 2021, the UK offshore company said.Meanwhile, Awilco Drilling reported contract revenue of USD 10.3 million (USD 10.4 million in Q2)…

ST Engineering Halter Marine and Offshore (STEHMO) installed a NOV crown mounted compensator (CMC) on Diamond Offshore’s Ocean Blackhawk drillship.The 215-metric-ton passive heave compensator was fully assembled and lifted on the top of the derrick on May 22, 2019. Carol Crane Rigging & Lifting Technology and Mammoet supported STEHMO with completing the engineered lift. STEHMO also cleaned and painted tanks, lifeboats and the exterior hull above the waterline.Before the lift,…

Japanese hydrocarbon exploration, production and transportation company, Japan Petroleum Exploration Co., Ltd. (JAPEX) has started the exploratory drilling at offshore Hidaka area of Hokkaido.The drilling job is a part of the offshore exploration project commissioned by the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (ANRE).This project is aiming to evaluate the presence of oil and natural gas resources in the area based on the analysis to be conducted through the result from this exploration well.The location of the exploration well is approximately 50 kilometers offshore of Hidaka area of Hokkaido with the depth of approximately 1…

Angola state oil company Sonangol has taken delivery of Libongos, the first of two new drillships built by Korean shipyard Daewoo Shipbuilding Marine Engineering (DSME).The new seventh-generation drillship, christened March 21 in Busan, is capable of operating in deep, ultra-deep and pre-salt waters and will be available to carry out national and international work, Sonangol said.Sonangol president Carlos Saturnino, said, "Having now in our hands a drill rig, whose specifications allow us to overcome the challenges of the new exploration and production frontiers…