Ensco sublets ENSCO 8503 rig

Offshore staff

LONDON – Ensco plc says is has sublet its new ultra-deepwater semisubmersible drilling rig. The rig is scheduled to begin sea trials and upon acceptance will mobilize to French Guiana to drill for Tullow.

Mobilization to French Guiana is scheduled to begin in 1Q 2011 and take up to 50 days in total to make ready to drill. The drilling is estimated to require as much as three months. The sublet dayrate is $440,000.

Following completion of this work, the rig will return to the US Gulf of Mexico to resume its contract with Cobalt.

“The sublet agreement provides many benefits to all parties,” says Carey Lowe, senior vice president, Ensco. “Tullow is contracting a state-of-the-art drilling rig for a short-term assignment. Cobalt now has additional time to secure permits in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico before incurring certain drilling costs and Ensco has gained a new deepwater customer in a new market.”

12/02/2010