Shell will not keep Deepsea Bollsta in Namibia beyond June 2024, rig owner Northern Ocean has disclosed.
Northern Ocean said it was in talks with potential customers in West Africa and in harsh environment markets.
The Deepsea Bollsta arrived in Namibia in December 2022, from Norway. It has been drilling exploration and appraisal wells in the Orange Basin.
“We are working at pace and scale to understand the potential of the PEL0039 license in the Orange Basin. In the last two years, we have used the Bollsta rig to drill five exploration wells, two appraisal wells and complete a complex flow test safely and successfully,” said a Shell spokesperson.
“We intend to continue our back-to-back drilling campaign over the remaining term of the contract by appraising the Jonker discovery and drilling at least one more exploration well.”
The official went on to say the well results had provided substantial information on the subsurface, hydrocarbon volumes in place and potential flow rates.
“It is therefore timely that when our contract with the Bollsta finishes in June 2024, to have a focused period of data analysis in order to plan the next phase of operations.”
Northern Ocean said the rig had provided “outstanding performance” in a “challenging region through the winter season”.
In May 2023, Northern Ocean said it had agreed an extension with Shell for the Deepsea Bollsta. This extended the contract from December 2023 to June 2023. It also had an option for another six months.
It reported the first six months accounted for $88.6 million, with the six-month option adding a further $81mn.
The Deepsea Bollsta has been working on PEL 39, where it made discoveries at Graff-1, La Rona-1 and Jonker-1. It also drilled the Lesedi-1 well.
Upstream reported this month that the rig had begun drilling the Jonker-2A appraisal well, 23 km from the discovery well. Namcor has estimated Jonker as holding 2.5 billion barrels, while Graff holds 2.4bn barrels.
Northern Ocean has also provided its Deepsea Mira to TotalEnergies, also for work in the Orange Basin. The Deepsea Mira arrived in late June for a firm contract of 300 days. It also has two options, which would extend its term to the end of 2024.
Recommended for you
