Photo: www.searig.com
The contract is part of a joint venture between state owned oil company CNOOC and Canadian Husky who have the rights to explore the Liwan field for energy resources. Seadrill designed West Hercules and contracted Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Enginerring Co. to construct it in South-Korea in November 2006.
Hercules is one of the most advanced drilling rigs ever built. It is a sixth generation semi-submersible unit emphasizing a broader spectre of capabilities, a larger operating area, a high load carrying capacity, increased efficiency and an improved safety and working environment. With a capability of operating at water depths up to 3000 meters and a drilling depth of 10.670 meters, it is at the same time designed to safely withstand the potential harsh weather conditions in the South China Sea.
The rig's capabilities is the result of expertise gained from over 30 years of developing oil extraction technology in the harsh off-shore climates of Norway and Northern Europe - experience which has led Seadrill's mobile drilling fleet to be considered one of the most modern in the world. Today, the company has some 7000 highly skilled employees, representing over 25 nationalities, operating in 15 countries on five continents. The three year contract with Husky Oil China Ltd is Seadrill's first project in China.
"Norway offers world class technology in areas critical to Southern China. Offshore oil and gas, renewable energy, solar and wind in particular, and environmental technologies have been agreed as important areas of cooperation between China and Norway. As such, the purchase of Norwegian company Awilco by CNOOC earlier this year was an important step in the Sino-Norwegian collaboration of off-shore oil and gas. The recent contract and supply by Seadrill to CNOOC and Husky is another such important step in the direction of a strategic partnership in this field", Consul General Tormod C. Endresen says.
The employment of the new rig in China's oil industry was celebrated recently during a spudding ceremony in Shenzhen, which was attended by the management of the three companies and the Norwegian Consulate General in Guangzhou.