Offshore staff
SINGAPORE -- Keppel FELS has deliveredRowan Viking, the first of three KFELS N-Class jackups it is building for Rowan Companies.
The rig, based on the proprietary KFELS N-Class design, is the largest jackup constructed in Singapore. At the naming ceremony, Matt Ralls, President and CEO of Rowan, said the new rigs “will add to our market-leading position in large jackups with hook-load capacities of two million pounds or more."
"Importantly, these rigs will be certified to work in the demanding Norwegian sector of the North Sea, where we see solid demand for high-specification jack-ups. At the same time, we see multiple drilling opportunities in other global markets for this elite class of rig."
The KFELS N-Class jackup, which has an overall height of 568 ft (173 m), and extendable to 598 ft (182 m), is designed to operate in harsh weather conditions in water depths ranging from 400-500 ft (122-152 m), 40% deeper than the capability of traditional units in benign waters.
It can drill to subsurface depths of 35,000 ft (10,668 m), which Keppel FELS says is 15% deeper than standard harsh environment jackups.
The KFELS N-Class jackup can also be configured for drilling in two positions concurrently, 26 ft (7.9 m) apart. This capability allows the jackup to accept process modules for production activities while performing drilling activities at the secondary cantilever position.
Construction of the other two new rigs, theRowan Stavanger and Rowan Norway, is on schedule with deliveries scheduled for 1Q and 2Q, 2011.
In the US, Keppel AmFELS is currently assembling two of four Rowan EXL-Class jackups (Enhanced Super 116E), with deliveries expected in 1Q 2011 and 3Q 2012.
10/25/2010
