Page 10: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Mar/Apr 2024)

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MARKETS OFFSHORE DRILLING RIGS

As Dayrates Continue to Rise,

Could We See More Energy

Companies Buying Offshore Rigs?

By Teresa Wilkie, Director of RigLogix, Westwood Global Energy Group he price to rent an offshore rig hit a nine-year tries including Angola, Mozambique, Namibia and Su- high last year with jackups, semisubmersibles riname covering exploration and development activities. and drillships costing on average $118,000, In late 2023, the same operator tendered again for up to $368,000 and $419,000, respectively (as of 31 three more rigs (two foaters and one jackup) to work un-

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December 2023). These fgures represent an overall 54% der long-term deals offshore Suriname. increase in dayrates when compared with 2021. This swift With the frst deal awarded, rumors are rife that a simi- rate of cost infation – sparked by higher global rig de- lar ownership agreement could be struck for another of the mand, rising utilisation and tightening availability – has company’s long-term requirements.

more recently become a factor in the slowdown in con- tracting activity as operators take stock of their current rig

Previous Agreements with Mixed Success provisions and look at ways to keep future projects eco- While the deal is certainly one of a kind, this is not the nomical, as well as being extra careful to make the right rig frst time an operator has opted to buy or at least acquire a selection, especially for long-term campaigns. partial stake in an offshore rig in a bid to control costs and

One potential solution, as demonstrated by a recently availability. In fact, joint drilling contractor and oil com- struck deal between TotalEnergies and Vantage Drilling, is pany rig ownership dates back to the 1970s, but oil com- to acquire a majority stake in a rig. Specifcally, ultra-deep- panies eventually decided they did not want to be in the water 7th generation drillship Tungsten Explorer, for which rig owning business and most partnerships were dissolved. the operator is to purchase a 75% stake through creation of Some of the more recent examples include Brazilian a new joint venture (JV) with the drilling contractor that National Oil Company (NOC) Petrobras and Mitsui JV will retain the remaining 25% interest in the 2013-built – P&M Drilling International, which owns the ultra-deep- rig. As part of the deal, TotalEnergies will pay $199 million water drillship Petrobras 10000. Transocean manages the and Vantage will continue to manage the rig for 10 years. rig, which has been working for Petrobras since its delivery

TotalEnergies Chairman and CEO, Patrick Pouyanne, in 2009, and it has an agreement in place with P&M to stated that the deal was done to help control costs as rig day- acquire the rig under a 20-year capital lease contract. rates continue upwards. The operator also commented that In addition to Petrobras, there are other NOCs that have the effective dayrate for the rig will be “much lower than owned feets at their disposal. ONGC is a good example, as $400,000”, which is around the current average price per it currently owns and operates six jackups and two drillships day for a rig of this calibre. Pouyanne also stated that the JV in addition to the 34 rigs it rents from other rig owners.

will provide “value and fexibility” and hinted that more such Meanwhile, Shell and Noble jointly designed ultra- deals are to be expected from the company in the future. deepwater drillships Noble Bully 1 and 2, which were both

Back in June last year, the operator issued a tender in delivered in 2011 at a cost of $600 million apiece but only search of two ultra-deepwater drillships for up to 10 years worked for the operator for fve and seven years respec- apiece, with one rig to be solely placed offshore Angola tively, before the pair were retired in 2020 and 2021 due while the other unit would move between various coun- to limited success with the ship’s design. The Bully rig de- 10 OFFSHORE ENGINEER OEDIGITAL.COM