Mexico's Grupo R Orders Additional Jackups from Keppel FELS for $820M

Keppel FELS, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M), has secured contracts from Mexican drilling company, Grupo R, to build four jackups worth $820 million.

The jackups will be built to Keppel's proprietary KFELS B Class design and are scheduled for delivery progressively from 2Q 2015 to 4Q 2015.

When completed, Keppel FELS will have built ten KFELS B Class jackups for Mexican customers since 2012, including two for PEMEX.

Wong Kok Seng, managing director (Offshore) of Keppel O&M and managing director of Keppel FELS, said, "Mexico is an important market for us and we are glad that Mexican operators have chosen the KFELS B Class as their preferred rig design and Keppel as the preferred shipyard. We look forward to support Grupo R as they expand their fleet of premium jackup rigs for the Mexican market, with safe, on time and on budget deliveries."

Customized to Grupo R's requirements, the rigs will be able to operate in water depths of up to 400 feet and drill to depths of 30,000 feet.

PEMEX, the Mexican national oil company has announced investment plans of $25.3 billion for 2013, of which $20 billion will be targeted at upstream activities. On a visit to Keppel FELS on 30 January 2013, Mr Emilio Lozoya Austin, CEO of PEMEX, said that the company is embarking on its most ambitious drilling program in decades and plans to add between eight and 12 offshore platforms to its fleet.

Ramiro Garza V., CEO of Grupo R said, "PEMEX have indicated their aim to operate the biggest fleet of jackup rigs in the world and Grupo R is well positioned to support them with four premium jackup rigs. We chose the KFELS B Class jackup design for our first shallow water rigs because of their high specifications and their proven success for PEMEX. In choosing Keppel FELS, we are also partnering a shipyard which is able to meet the needs of our customers in terms of cost-effectiveness, time, technology, quality, and safety with environmental considerations. This will further enhance our capabilities as the leader in Mexico's onshore and offshore drilling industry."

Developed by Keppel's technology arm, Offshore Technology Development, the KFELS B Class rigs incorporate Keppel's advanced and fully-automated high capacity rack and pinion jacking system, and Self-Positioning Fixation System. It provides maximum uptime with reduced emissions and discharges. For its environmental-friendly features, the KFELS B Class design was bestowed the prestigious Engineering Achievement Award from the Institution of Engineers Singapore in 2009.

The above contracts are not expected to have a material impact on the net tangible assets or earnings per share of Keppel Corporation Limited for the current financial year.

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South Sudan Orders Resumption of Crude-Oil Production

LONDON - The government of South Sudan has ordered the resumption of crude-oil production, days after the country and its neighbor, Sudan, came to an agreement over their disputed border.

In an official document, South Sudan's minister of petroleum and mining, Stephen Dhieu Dau, said, "Foreign oil companies and pipeline operators operating in the [Republic of South Sudan] are hereby ordered and instructed...to recommence and re-establish the production of crude oil."

South Sudan ceded from Sudan in July 2011, taking with it most of the region's oil fields. This week's deal will unlock some 350,000 barrels a day that have been shut-in since January 2012 amid a bitter spat with Sudan over oil transit fees and contested oil-rich regions along the poorly marked 1,120-mile border.

A top official in South Sudan's national oil company told Dow Jones on Wednesday that oil exports were expected to reach the international market by May.

Copyright (c) 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

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Seadrill Orders Additional Jackups from Dalian

Seadrill has exercised fixed price options for the construction of two high specification jackup drilling rigs at Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore Co., Ltd. (DSIC Offshore) in China. The rigs are scheduled for delivery during the third and fourth quarter of 2015, and the estimated total project price is approximately $230 million (including project management, capitalized interest, drilling and handling tools, spares and operation preparations) per rig, with tail-heavy payment terms.

The two new units will be based on the F&G JU2000E design, with water depth capacity of 400 feet and drilling depth of 30,000 feet. Seadrill has now in total six jackups under construction at DSIC Offshore of which two are scheduled for delivery in 2013 and four in 2015.

Chief Executive Officer of Seadrill Management Ltd. Fredrik Halvorsen said in a comment, "The two jackup newbuilds are ordered in-line with our customers preference for high specification jackup drilling rigs and a strengthening jackup drilling market. We continue to see solid demand for this asset class with both dayrates and contract duration increasing. These two new orders will increase Seadrill's jackup fleet to 28 units and strengthen our position as the largest operator of modern high specification drilling units."

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Technip Saw Strong Increase in Orders in 2012

French oilfield services firm Technip announced Thursday a strong increase in its order intake during 2012 as its revenue increased by more than 20 percent.

Technip said that its order intake increased from $10.6 billion to $15.5 billion during 2012, while its order backlog increased by 36.8 percent to $19 billion. The firm's revenue for 2012 amounted to $10.9 billion, compared with $9.1 billion in 2011, while its net income improved 6.4 percent to $718 million.

Technip reported that order intake within its Subsea business sector during the fourth quarter of 2012 was, at $1.2 billion, 24.9-percent lower that the equivalent quarter in 2011. Here, orders included several small and medium-sized contracts on a number of continents. Notable among these was is the second phase of the Total E&P Angola GirRI project.

The firm saw a doubling of orders in its Onshore/Offshore segment during 4Q 2012, which included the first tension leg platform project by Sabah Shell Petroleum Company for the Malikai project in Malaysia.

Technip CEO Thierry Pilenko commented in a statement:

"Technip's performance was in line with our objectives throughout 2012, including the fourth quarter…The projects we delivered and won in 2012 reflect our focus on offering our clients differentiating technologies and on securing involvement in projects early in their life cycle. To support our growth, we have invested in talent worldwide; Technip now employs 36,500 people compared to 31,000 a year ago."

A former engineer, Jon is an award-winning editor who has covered the technology, engineering and energy sectors since the mid-1990s. Email Jon at jmainwaring@rigzone.com.

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ABB Bags $160M Worth of Electrical Systems for Drillship Orders in Brazil

ABB disclosed Friday that it has won orders worth $160 million from Jurong Shipyard for the design, supply, supervision of installation, testing and commissioning of the main electrical systems for seven next generation drill ships that will operate in the deep water oil and gas fields off the coast of Brazil. The orders were booked in 4Q 2012 and 1Q 2013.

The ships will be used to drill wells in the enormous offshore pre-salt fields off the southeast coast of Brazil. ABB's integrated electrical package will provide a reliable power supply to subsystems onboard ships and help the operators maximize their energy efficiencies.

 The seven vessels are the first in a series of high-efficiency drill ships designed for ultra-deep water operations and built by Estaleiro Jurong Aracruz at their shipyard on the central eastern coast of Espirito Santo, Brazil. It is a wholly-owned shipyard of the Jurong Shipyard based in Singapore.

"ABB's ability to provide locally produced content for this project and the expertise of our local organization were important factors in winning this order. This represents a breakthrough for ABB in the Brazilian market," said Veli-Matti Reinikkala, Head of ABB’s Process Automation division.

"ABB has a great record of project execution for similar projects with Jurong’s shipyard in Singapore; the trust achieved over time with the shipyard was crucial for us in closing this agreement," added Haider Rashid, region manager for ABB in South Asia and country manager of Singapore.

ABB's scope of supply includes complete electrical systems including generators, distribution switchboards, transformers, drives and motors to power the ships' thrusters and drilling systems. Equipment deliveries to the shipyard are scheduled for this year, with the first vessel to be delivered to the ship-owner in the second quarter of 2015.

Equipment deliveries to the shipyard are scheduled for 2013, with the first vessel to be delivered to the ship-owner in the second quarter of 2015.

The ships will be delivered to Sete Brazil, a company established in 2010 by various Brazilian and international investors. On delivery, the seven drill-ships will be chartered to Petrobras for 15 years. Three of the ships will be partially owned and operated for Petrobas by Odfjell and three by Seadrill, both Norwegian based companies.

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ABB Bags $160M Worth of Electrical Systems for Drillship Orders in Brazil

ABB disclosed Friday that it has won orders worth $160 million from Jurong Shipyard for the design, supply, supervision of installation, testing and commissioning of the main electrical systems for seven next generation drill ships that will operate in the deep water oil and gas fields off the coast of Brazil. The orders were booked in 4Q 2012 and 1Q 2013.

The ships will be used to drill wells in the enormous offshore pre-salt fields off the southeast coast of Brazil. ABB's integrated electrical package will provide a reliable power supply to subsystems onboard ships and help the operators maximize their energy efficiencies.

 The seven vessels are the first in a series of high-efficiency drill ships designed for ultra-deep water operations and built by Estaleiro Jurong Aracruz at their shipyard on the central eastern coast of Espirito Santo, Brazil. It is a wholly-owned shipyard of the Jurong Shipyard based in Singapore.

"ABB's ability to provide locally produced content for this project and the expertise of our local organization were important factors in winning this order. This represents a breakthrough for ABB in the Brazilian market," said Veli-Matti Reinikkala, Head of ABB’s Process Automation division.

"ABB has a great record of project execution for similar projects with Jurong’s shipyard in Singapore; the trust achieved over time with the shipyard was crucial for us in closing this agreement," added Haider Rashid, region manager for ABB in South Asia and country manager of Singapore.

ABB's scope of supply includes complete electrical systems including generators, distribution switchboards, transformers, drives and motors to power the ships' thrusters and drilling systems. Equipment deliveries to the shipyard are scheduled for this year, with the first vessel to be delivered to the ship-owner in the second quarter of 2015.

Equipment deliveries to the shipyard are scheduled for 2013, with the first vessel to be delivered to the ship-owner in the second quarter of 2015.

The ships will be delivered to Sete Brazil, a company established in 2010 by various Brazilian and international investors. On delivery, the seven drill-ships will be chartered to Petrobras for 15 years. Three of the ships will be partially owned and operated for Petrobas by Odfjell and three by Seadrill, both Norwegian based companies.

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Seadrill Orders Two Jackups from Dalian Shipbuilding

Deepwater drilling specialist Seadrill announced Friday that it has ordered two jackups for delivery in the first half of 2015 from Chinese firm Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore.

The two units, which will cost $230 million per rig, will be based on the F&G JU2000E design, with water depth capacity of 400 feet and drilling depth of up to 30,000 feet. Seadrill has also arranged option agreements with Dalian to construct an additional two rigs for delivery in the third and fourth quarters of 2015, said the firm.

Seadrill Chairman John Fredriksen commented in a statement:

"These newbuilds position us for additional growth in a strengthening jackup market, providing further earnings upside for Seadrill. The premium jackup market continues to demonstrate strength as evidenced by increasing day rates and utilizations. Customers continue show preference for newer units from drilling contractors with proven track records of safe and efficient operations.

"Currently 312 jackups, or 65 percent of the total fleet of 483 jackups are older than 25 years. These two new firm orders increases our fleet of modern jackups to 25 rigs with an average age of three years, and further strengthens our position as the leading operator of premium modern, high-quality drilling units."

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Seadrill Orders Two Jackups from Dalian Shipbuilding

Deepwater drilling specialist Seadrill announced Friday that it has ordered two jackups for delivery in the first half of 2015 from Chinese firm Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore.

The two units, which will cost $230 million per rig, will be based on the F&G JU2000E design, with water depth capacity of 400 feet and drilling depth of up to 30,000 feet. Seadrill has also arranged option agreements with Dalian to construct an additional two rigs for delivery in the third and fourth quarters of 2015, said the firm.

Seadrill Chairman John Fredriksen commented in a statement:

"These newbuilds position us for additional growth in a strengthening jackup market, providing further earnings upside for Seadrill. The premium jackup market continues to demonstrate strength as evidenced by increasing day rates and utilizations. Customers continue show preference for newer units from drilling contractors with proven track records of safe and efficient operations.

"Currently 312 jackups, or 65 percent of the total fleet of 483 jackups are older than 25 years. These two new firm orders increases our fleet of modern jackups to 25 rigs with an average age of three years, and further strengthens our position as the leading operator of premium modern, high-quality drilling units."

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Seadrill Orders Two Jackups from Dalian Shipbuilding

Deepwater drilling specialist Seadrill announced Friday that it has ordered two jackups for delivery in the first half of 2015 from Chinese firm Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore.

The two units, which will cost $230 million per rig, will be based on the F&G JU2000E design, with water depth capacity of 400 feet and drilling depth of up to 30,000 feet. Seadrill has also arranged option agreements with Dalian to construct an additional two rigs for delivery in the third and fourth quarters of 2015, said the firm.

Seadrill Chairman John Fredriksen commented in a statement:

"These newbuilds position us for additional growth in a strengthening jackup market, providing further earnings upside for Seadrill. The premium jackup market continues to demonstrate strength as evidenced by increasing day rates and utilizations. Customers continue show preference for newer units from drilling contractors with proven track records of safe and efficient operations.

"Currently 312 jackups, or 65 percent of the total fleet of 483 jackups are older than 25 years. These two new firm orders increases our fleet of modern jackups to 25 rigs with an average age of three years, and further strengthens our position as the leading operator of premium modern, high-quality drilling units."

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Pacific Drilling Orders Eighth UDW Drillship

Pacific Drilling S.A. announced Tuesday that its wholly-owned subsidiary exercised an option to construct its eighth ultra-deepwater drillship with Samsung Heavy Industries.

"We are extremely pleased to announce the order of our eighth ultra-deepwater drillship," stated Pacific Drilling CEO Chris Beckett. "The strong market for deepwater drilling, attractive construction cost, strength of relationships with our preferred vendors, and robust operating performance of our in-service rigs support the decision to invest in the further expansion of our fleet."

The drillship will have a rated water depth of 12,000 feet, be equipped for 40,000 feet drilling depth, have accommodation for 200 personnel and be equipped to support dual gradient drilling. The total cost, excluding capitalized interest, will be approximately $620 million and delivery is scheduled for March 16, 2015. Financing for the construction of this rig is expected to be provided by a combination of cash flows from ongoing operations and long-term debt.

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