Valaris’ merger with Transocean has obtained all regulatory approvals and should close on or around December 1.

Valaris President and CEO Anton Dibowitz issued the update in his review of the company’s third-quarter results.

Since August 5, Valaris’ contract backlog has grown by around $600 million. Highlights include a two-well exploration contract from Petronas Suriname Exploration & Production for the drillship Valaris DS-18, with a duration of up to seven months.

Activity should start in the current quarter.

Another drillship, Valaris DS-12, gained a one-well extension to its present contract for BP Exploration Delta offshore Egypt. This will start once the existing program ends in late 2027 or early 2028, with an estimated duration of 60 days.

In the US Gulf, bp awarded Valaris a new three-year service contract supporting drilling operations on the Mad Dog and Thunder Horse platforms, likely taking effect in January 2027.

Among multiple new awards in the jackup segment:

• A one-well contract for Valaris 107 with Emperor Energy offshore Australia, starting in Q2, 2027 (30 days’ minimum duration)

• A one-well contract extension for Valaris 106 with BP Indonesia, commencing in Q4,2028

• Contract extension for Valaris Norway with Ithaca Energy in the UK North Sea. (200 days, starting in Q2, 2027, with options to extend by up to 163 days)

• Contract extension for Valaris 122 with INEOS for a project in the Danish North Sea, taking effect in February, with the rig switching to the UK North Sea in July to work for the same operator on another project (around 158 days).

• A sixty-one day extension to a contract for Valaris 248 with Seatrium in the UK North Sea, performing accommodation support services for an offshore wind project. 

Elsewhere, the ARO Drilling joint venture gained three-year contract extensions from Saudi Aramco for five rigs, all of which were recently under way.

The company also trimmed its fleet, selling the semisubmersible Valaris MS for recycling, and offloading the jackup Valaris 111 to another buyer for conversion to a mobile offshore production unit.

Dibowitz, commenting on recent market developments, said: “We have returned four drillships back to work this year following significant idle periods…Fleet utilization is increasing, and all ten of our active drillships are now on contract…” 

He continued: “The outlook for our business is increasingly positive. The pipeline of deepwater opportunities remains robust, the opportunities continue to convert to contracts, and day rates are moving higher, driven by favorable market fundamentals and strong customer demand for high-specification drillships.”