Ensco declares drillship option at SHI
New York listed-Ensco has declared one of two options for a DP3 ultra-deepwater drillship to be built at Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI), Seatrade Asia online reports.
The drillship, named Ensco DS-9, will be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2014, becoming the seventh DP3 drillship in Ensco's fleet.
Ensco announced the order the first drillship of this GF12000 hull design series on 5 April.
“The near-term supply of deepwater rigs is limited and we believe supply-demand dynamics will continue to support favorable day rates, which have risen sharply over the past year,” said Dan Rabun, chairman, president and ceo of Ensco.
The new drillship will be capable of drilling in water depths of up to 12,000 feet and a total vertical drilling depth of 40,000 feet.