Noble and Odfjell land UK deal extensions with BP and Serica Energy

BP (LON: BP) and Serica Energy (AIM: SQZ) have respectively extended contracts with Noble Corporation and Odfjell Technology in the UK North Sea.

Serica has signed a two-year extension with Odfjell Technology (OSLO: OTL) for services on board the Bruce platform, while BP has signed a 90-day deal for the Noble Innovator which has been drilling at its Murlach project.

BP – Noble Innovator

First signed in December 2022 for $50m, the 90-day extension means Noble Corporation’s (NYSE: NE) Innovator  rig will be on-contract with BP until December 2024.

The rig has so far been used to decommission wells at the BP Kate field, 136 miles off Aberdeen, and it spudded two wells at the Murlach project over October and November, which is planned as a tie-back to the ETAP hub.

Noble and BP have also agreed to expand the structure of the contract options, which now gives BP the choice to extend the contract by up to six additional wells at “pre-agreed” dayrates.

© Supplied by Noble Corporation

Blake Denton, senior vice president for Noble marketing and contracts, said: “We are excited to get this opportunity to continue building on our relationship with bp and to contribute to UK energy security by delivering efficient and responsible offshore operations.”

According to its last fleet status report, the Noble Innovator is currently on a $135,000 dayrate.

Noble also has its Intrepid rig starting work in the UK with Harbour Energy this month, and its Resilient rig is due to start UK work with Petrogas in August.

The Noble Innovator was built in 2003 by Hyundai Heavy Industries Ulsan in South Korea and has a drilling depth of 30,000 ft.

BP is seeking first oil for Murlach in 2025, expected to recover 26m barrels of oil and 602m cubic metres of gas.

Odfjell Technology – Serica

Serica has granted a two-year contract extension with Odfjell Tecghnology for storage, preservation, maintenance and platform drilling services on the Bruce installation.

The deal means Odfjell will be on-contract until November 2025.

It’s the latest in a series of extensions for Odfjell, which was first contracted on Bruce in November 2018.

UK country manager for Odfjell Technology, Stuart Sutherland, said: “This contract extension demonstrates the continued commitment between our companies in supporting the Bruce platform. Looking forward, we see this as an opportunity for Odfjell Technology to support further operations through the integration of our three business areas, offering streamlined service delivery.”