Transocean has landed a $252million contract after Beacon Offshore Energy and its partners reached FID on the Shenandoah project in the Gulf of Mexico.
Beacon (BOE) owns and operates Shenandoah with a 47% stake, with the remainder held by partner Navitas Petroleum.
The project has been reported to hold 281million potentially recoverable barrels of oil equivalent.
Transocean said the award for the newbuild Deepwater Altas includes a $30million mobilisation fee.
“This award results from the final investment decision of BOE and the Shenandoah working interest owners to sanction the previously announced Shenandoah project in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico,” Transocean said.
Beacon and Navitas Petroleum have been contacted for comment.
The drilling programme consists of two phases, with the first expected to begin in the third quarter of 2022 and expected to last 255 days.
After the first phase is complete, using blowout preventers rated to 15,000 psi, a 20,000 psi system will be installed lasting 45-60 days, after which the second phase will begin, lasting around 275 days.
Transocean CEO Jeremy Thigpen said: “This is a significant milestone for Transocean, BOE and the Shenandoah partners, as we jointly venture into this new frontier of ultra-deepwater drilling.
“We are extremely pleased to have secured the maiden contract for the Deepwater Atlas; the first of our two 8th generation ultra-deepwater drillships that will enter the market in 2022, both of which will be outfitted for 20,000 psi ultra-deepwater well operations.
“We are very encouraged by the growing list, across multiple customers, of 20,000 psi opportunities in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. And, with the only two assets in the world specifically designed to maximize efficiencies for 20,000 psi well completions, we are the undisputed market leader in this space, and thus excited about the future prospects for these state-of-the art assets.”