Ensco orders fourth ultra-premium, harsh environment jackup of ENSCO 120 series
Ensco has ordered a fourth ultra-premium, harsh environment jackup, the ENSCO 123, for delivery in Q2 2016, the company announced today. This will extend the company’s ENSCO 120 series of ultra-premium harsh environment jackups. The ENSCO 123 rig will be built under a fixed-price shipyard construction contract with Keppel FELS in Singapore that includes an option for one additional, similarly designed rig.
The ENSCO 123 rig’s estimated construction cost, approximately $285 million, includes commissioning, systems integration testing and project management. The shipyard construction price for the rig is approximately $265 million.
The ENSCO 120 series features a patented high-capacity cantilever envelope and a 2.5 million-pound quad derrick that provides significant advantages for drilling wells in harsh environments, in up to 400 ft of water to a TD of 40,000 ft.
“The customer response to our ENSCO 120 series rigs has been overwhelmingly positive. The first three rigs in the series were contracted well ahead of their delivery dates to three separate customers – each of whom recognizes the advantages of our proprietary design, in particular our patented cantilever technology. We and our customers also benefit from the advantages of standardization, namely operational efficiency, inventory management and training programs. We are already in discussions with customers about multi-year programs for ENSCO 123 and follow-on programs for the other ENSCO 120 series rigs,” Dan Rabun, Ensco chairman, president and CEO, said.
The company took delivery of the series’ first jackup, the ENSCO 120, in October. It is contracted to Nexen in the North Sea for Q4 2013.
With high-temperature, high-pressure equipment, automated hands-free offline pipe handling systems, ultra-high capacity jacking and fixation systems, 145-person quarters and strict noise and ergonomic standards, these rigs feature equipment and capabilities previously found only on the largest ultra-harsh environment jackup rigs.
These versatile rigs offer customers unprecedented value through increased drilling efficiencies for the most demanding large multi-well platform programs, ultra-deep gas programs and ultra-long reach wells in offshore basins worldwide, the company said.
“This new investment is consistent with our strategy of adding rigs with unique technology that distinguishes Ensco from its competitors and provides superior returns on investment. We now have seven rigs under construction that will grow earnings and cash flow well into the future,” Mr Rabun added.
