Maersk Drilling has won a £6.2 million contract with Serica Energy for a development well at the Columbus field in the central North Sea.
Work is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2020, with an estimated duration of 70 days.
The harsh environment jack-up rig to be used for the job has yet to be assigned.
London-listed Serica received approval for the Columbus project from the Oil and Gas Authority a year ago.
Serica aims to start production from the 13.4m barrel field in the second quarter of 2021, with output reaching 7,800 barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day at peak.
The project will involve a single well connected to a planned pipeline between Arran and Shell’s Shearwater platform.
Serica is the operator of Columbus with a 50% interest.
Its partners are Tailwind Energy and Waldorf Production, with 25% each.