Keppel's yard: in Singapore
Ensco names latest rig at Keppel
Keppel and US-based Ensco have celebrated the naming of the deep-water semi-submersible drilling rig Ensco 8501 at the Singaporean outfit’s yard.
The second in a series of seven deep-water semi-subs to be built by Keppel for Ensco, the Ensco 8501 will be chartered by Noble Energy and Nexen for operations in the Gulf of Mexico when it is delivered in the middle of the year.
The first deep-water rig, Ensco 8500, was delivered in June 2008.
“We expect to begin realising the benefit of our significant deep-water investment starting in the second quarter of 2009. The first of our seven new Ensco 8500 series ultra deep-water semis, Ensco 8500, is currently undergoing deep-water sea trials prior to commencement of operation,” Ensco chief executive Dan Rabun said.
He added “with the expected addition of all seven new 8500 series deep-water rigs to our fleet by 2012, we anticipate that our deep-water segment will contribute approximately one-third of our revenue once all the new rigs are delivered and operational.”
The Ensco 8501 is capable of drilling in 8500 feet of water, and can be upgraded to 10,000 feet water depth capability if required. It has a drilling depth of 35,000 feet and can accommodate up to 150 people.