Gulf Drilling International (GDI), a fully-owned subsidiary of Gulf International Services, has signed a construction pact with Keppel FELS for a new jack-up drilling rig “Halul” at an estimated cost of QR825mn.
The expected delivery is in the first quarter of 2016, said a GDI spokesman. The acquisition of this high spec rig will further the efforts of GDI to grow and modernise its fleet, with the objective being to reduce its average age while increasing its technical capabilities, the company said.
The rig will have accommodation facilities for 150 persons and a cantilever outreach of 70ft and be rated for 300ft water depth and a drilling depth of 30,000ft. It will be enabled by an off-line stand building and comes equipped with all the extra features, facilities and equipment that GDI has set as a standard for its recently delivered rig “Dukhan”.
The contract for the rig “Halul” was signed by Ibrahim J al-Othman, GDI CEO and Wong Kok Seng, Keppel O&M (offshore) and Keppel FELS managing director. “Halul” will become the 5th KFELS B Class designed rig in GDI’s fleet. Upon delivery in 2016, it will join Qatar Petroleum’s offshore operation as the fourth jack-up rig supplied by GDI.
“We have built a solid relationship with Keppel FELS, who have a reputation for reliability and dependability. The majority of our rigs are of the newer, high spec variety that have been customised to meet the needs of our clients,” al-Othman said.
The KFELS B Class has established itself as a reliable high specification jack-up rig for the Middle East with more than 10 such rigs successfully operating there, Seng said.
In addition to providing new build jack-ups, KFELS shipyard in Qatar, Nakilat-Keppel O&M, is also supporting GDI with the construction of a lift-boat now in progress and the repair and maintenance of their rig fleet, he said, adding “our strong partnership has been built on a number of successful projects that have been delivered to them over the years and we look forward to continuing our support of GDI as they grow in the Middle East.”
Oil rebounds on Opec
production cut talk
Brent and US crude futures rose more than a dollar yesterday on the prospect of a possible Opec production cut and on news that Libya curbed output after rockets hit an area near a refinery. Oil prices received more lift when Russia said deploying troops in Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in March, was a top priority with Nato holding military exercises in the Ukraine near its border with Poland.
Oil prices pushed higher early after Opec Secretary General Abdallah El-Badri told reporters he expected the group to lower its oil output target to 29.5mn bpd from 30mn bpd when it meets next in late November.
November Brent was up $1.39 at $99.27 a barrel at 12.12p. EDT (1612 GMT). The October contract expired and went off the board on Monday at $96.21. Brent is down 11% in the third quarter, its biggest quarterly drop since the second quarter of 2012.
The front-month US October crude was up $1.70 at $94.62 a barrel. The October contract expires on September 22.
Crude futures got another jolt higher when Libya’s state-run National Oil Corp said the El Sharara 340,000-bpd oil field has “slightly” reduced production after rockets hit an area near the Zawiya refinery.
