HAMILTON, BERMUDA--(Marketwire - Feb 1, 2013) - Seadrill has entered into an agreement
for
the construction of two high specification jack-up drilling rigs with
Dalian
Shipbuilding Industry Offshore Inc. (DSIC Offshore) in China. The new units
are
scheduled for delivery during the first and second quarter 2015, and the
estimated total project price is approximately US$230 million (including
project
management, capitalized interest, drilling and handling tools, spares and
operation preparations) per rig, with tail-heavy payment terms.
The two new units will be based on the F&G JU2000E design, with water depth
capacity of 400ft and drilling depth of 30,000ft. Seadrill has in addition
received fixed price option agreements to construct an additional two units
at
Dalian, with delivery in the third and fourth quarter 2015. The new
jack-ups are
of the same design as the four jack-ups currently under construction by
Seadrill
at Dalian and Jurong, Singapore.
John Fredriksen, Chairman and President of Seadrill Limited, says in a
comment,
"These newbuilds position us for additional growth in a strengthening
jack-up
market, providing further earnings upside for Seadrill. The premium jack-up
market continues to demonstrate strength as evidenced by increasing
dayrates and
utilizations. Customers continue show preference for newer units from
drilling
contractors with proven track records of safe and efficient
operations. Currently 312 jack-ups or 65% of the total fleet of 483
jack-ups are
older than 25 years. These two new firm orders increases our fleet of
modern
jack-ups to 25 rigs with an average age of 3 years, and further strengthens
our
position as the leading operator of premium modern, high-quality drilling
units.
This information is subject of the disclosure requirements pursuant to
section
5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.
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Source: Seadrill Limited via Thomson Reuters ONE
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