Ensco takes on Apache rig contract

Offshore staff

LONDON -- Ensco has agreed to acquire for $186 million a high-spec jackup (KFELS MOD V - Super B Class design) suited for drilling deep gas wells. The company sees this as a growth area for jackups, especially in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

The rig, which will be renamed Ensco 109, features:
       · 2 million lb hoisting capacity 

       · 15,000 psi (1,034 bar) high-pressure BOP 

       · Close to 5,000 bbl of liquid mud capacity

       · Capability to drill in water depths of up to 350 ft (107 m), and to a total subsurface depth of 35,000 ft (10,668 m).

Ensco will take on the rig’s current drilling contract with Apache Corp. in Australia which extends through May 2011. The rig was delivered in 2008 to prior owner Diamond Offshore by Keppel FELS shipyard in Singapore, which is building four ENSCO 8500 Series ultra-deepwater drilling semis.

The company points out that all KFELS MOD V - Super B Class jackups currently have contracts, and will likely continue to command much higher day rates than standard duty jackups. This latest transaction is part of Ensco’s ongoing strategy to upgrade its fleet.



07/08/2010