Page 14: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Jul/Aug 2024)

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MARKETS RIGS an FPSO. Chariot Oil & Gas paid $120,000 and $130,000 per day,

Meanwhile, Shell has taken a hiatus from its drilling ac- respectively, for their short Namibian campaigns in 2018 tivities in PEL 39 and has not reported any further explo- with then Ocean Rig-owned drillship Ocean Rig Orion ration or appraisal plans at this point. (10,000’).

However, for those rigs fxed for work off the country

Further Rig Deals on the Horizon since 2022, dayrates have averaged $365,000 for mutu-

In addition to the frm backlog already in place, Galp ally agreed deals (i.e does not include fxed price options).

Energia plans to drill four wells around its Mopane Com- Meanwhile, the most recent fxture, which was secured for plex, with the frst well to spud before the close of 2024. a 7th generation drillship already in region, came with a

Market sources indicate that the operator may have picked price tag of $410,000 per day. up the Deepsea Bollsta for at least the frst well of its cam- paign, though this is yet to be confrmed by either party.

Challenges

BW Energy also intends to drill two frm wells within Westwood’s Wildcat reports that, “the Cretaceous tur-

PL003 next year; the frst to be drilled since taking opera- bidites plays in the Orange Basin have quickly emerged torship in 2017. The wells are expected to appraise Kudu as the largest oil plays since the Upper Cretaceous play in and target a shallower Upper or Lower Cretaceous oil ex- Suriname-Guyana”, which went from almost no rig activ- ploration target. A tender for a drillship or semi is expect- ity prior to 2016 to having fve drillships working in paral- ed to hit the market in August 2024. Kudu was the only lel for ExxonMobil by early 2020. signifcant hydrocarbon discovery made offshore Namibia However, there are still many challenges facing the de- prior to Venus and Graff. velopment of these Namibian resources including reservoir

Meanwhile, Woodside is yet to decide on its option to deliverability, gas management and extreme water depths. farm into PEL 87, containing the Saturn prospect, after The opportunities in Namibia are considerable to say carrying the cost of 3D seismic over the block in May 2023. the least for operators, rig managers and other service pro-

Alongside average global rig dayrates, Namibian rig viders alike, but the next few years will be key in determin- contracts have been getting more expensive due to the ing just how big the size of that prize will really be and if it ongoing market recovery. As an example, Tullow Oil and can support current rig demand growth expectations.

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