Keppel FELS is to build a jack-up for Mexican drilling company Grupo R for $206million with delivery in Q4 2015.
The rig, which will be built to Keppel’s proprietary KFELS B Class design, adds to the flotilla of four similar jack-ups that the Singapore group is building for Grupo R.
According to Wong Kok Seng, managing director (Offshore) of Keppel O&M and managing director of Keppel, with this order, there will be 65 KFELS B Class rigs in the market by 2015, of which some 13 rigs are for Mexico.
The jack-up, which will be customised to Grupo R’s requirements, will be equipped to operate in water depths to 122m and drilled to depths of 9,144m.
“Mexico is aiming to boost oil production through increased exploration and production with Pemex looking for a number of new high specification rigs that can optimise their operations,” Grupo R’s CEO Ramiro Garza Vargas said in a statement.
“The addition of this jack-up to the four KFELS B Class jack-ups we ordered earlier will enable us to meet their requirements and strengthen our position as the lead player in Mexico’s drilling industry.
“Building repeat rigs in a leading yard like Keppel FELS will ensure standardisation of high quality rigs delivered safely and on time for our customers. We are also able to reap efficiencies in the construction, training, daily operations and maintenance.”
Meanwhile, Mermaid Maritime Public Company (MMPC) associate Asia Offshore Drilling has taken delivery of its third new-build jack-up from Keppel FELS.
MMPC founded AOD in 2010 and holds 33.76% of the venture. Seadrill is AOD’s manager and owns 66.23% of its shares.
The rig AOD III will now be mobilised to the Middle East to begin a three-year contract with Saudi Aramco. The AOD I and II sister rigs are also working for the Saudi national company.