Maersk Drilling Signs Two-year Multi-service Jack-up Contract with Aker BP
Friday 31 August 2018
Maersk Drilling and Aker BP have agreed to a new two-year contract to reactivate and quickly deploy jack-up rig Maersk Reacher in the Norwegian part of the North Sea.
Maersk Reacher will be deployed as an accommodation rig, with the option of repurposing the rig for plugging & abandonment for the final phase of the contract. The rig is expected to commence operations in its new role by October, 2018. The flexible contract is agreed upon in continuation of the alliance between Maersk Drilling and Aker BP where the parties have committed to align incentives and co-create optimal solutions.
Maersk Reacher provides Aker BP with an accommodation capacity of 85 personnel on board. It is being reactivated from warm-stacking in Invergordon, Scotland, and will now return to Norwegian waters where the rig will be deployed at the Valhall East field, with a fixed contract length of two years. Rather than simply committing to two full years of accommodation costs, Aker BP has the option to repurpose the Reacher for plugging & abandonment for the final six months of the contract.
Maersk Drilling and Aker BP entered the joint jack-up alliance in November, 2017. The alliance aims at increasing profitability for the partners and is formalised in a five-year agreement with the option to extend for an additional five years.