$18-Million Rig Contract Awarded To Ingalls Yard

Huthnance Drilling Company of Houston has signed a contract with Ingalls Shipbuilding of Pascagoula, Miss., to build a Friede and Goldman design L-780 (Mod 2) jackup drilling rig. The contract is for about $18 million, exclusive of owner-furnished equip- ment. The offshore rig, scheduled for delivery in July 1981, is committed and will work in the Gulf of Mexico.

The rig will be capable of drilling to depths of 25,000 feet. The mobile unit will be 180 feet long and 175 feet wide, and will have accommodations for 56 personnel. The rig is designed for stable operation in high seas and a wide variety of soil conditions, ranging from soft soil found near the mouth of the Mississippi River to sandy soils located in current-swept areas, which are conducive to scouring.

Huthnance, with corporate headquarters in Houston and operations office in New Iberia, La., currently owns and operates five drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, and one rig in the North Sea area. With this order, the company has three additional rigs under construction.

Ingalls Shipbuilding, the only North American contractor currently building jackups under Friede-Goldman license, now has four L-780 rigs under construction, as well as two submersible rigs. All six rigs have been signed since February.

Ingalls, a division of Litton Industries, will build the new rigs at its modern, 800- acre facility in Pascagoula, which is also the site for major overhaul and modification of offshore drilling rigs and barges.

Other stories from July 1980 issue

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