While ≤500 hp rigs still lag all others in terms of utilization, in fact, their improvement in that area has led the way this year. This smallest class of rigs was hit the earliest and hardest by the recent downturn. Since the beginning of this year, however, utilization for this class has jumped by 33% vs. an aggregated gain of 4% for the other four combined rig classes. What’s driving this improvement? Beyond oil price strength, according to The Land Rig Newsletter’s Biweekly Report, there has been a big increase in the number of active operators, notably small private operators who also had the largest increase in active rig count (15%) among operator classes. This reflects the many small operators who don’t typically drill year-round. The Land Rig Newsletter team sees loosening credit availability and a generally improving climate for investor interest in drilling for and producing oil. At the same time, small drillers are keeping a tighter rein on marketed rig numbers. Consequently, ≤500 hp rigs are, if not exactly thriving, no longer on life support.

Baker Hughes announced that Darrell C. Howard has joined the company as President of the Integrated Operations organization.

 

Forum Subsea Solutions of Houston announced the sale of a sub-Atlantic Super Mohawk II remotely operated vehicle system to Abyss International Benthic Exploration S.A.R.L. of Montpellier, France. The Super Mohawk II is suitable for observation, survey, pipelay support, and inspections. Abyss International will use this system for inspection, survey, and intervention work on contracts in North and West Africa.

 

Schilling Robotics, LLC and Gregg Marine, Inc. announced the successful completion of field testing of their first seabed drilling unit offshore Vancouver, British Columbia. The system is currently being mobilized to drill near Australia, where it will begin work in the coming months for Apache Oil Corporation.

Hercules Offshore has received a new contract from Apache to take jackup Hercules 214, with the rig now under tow to location in Main Pass Block 68. Upon completion, the jackup will enter a yet-to-be-named shipyard for a 45-day ABS inspection. Jackup Hercules 150 completed a contract with Hilcorp Energy late last week, and the rig has just arrived on location in Eugene Island Block 28 for the start of a one-well contract with Rooster Petroleum. Work is scheduled to last around 25 days, making the rig next available in the second half of September.

 

Operations for ENI US Operating with semi ENSCO 8500 in Green Canyon Block 517 have ended, and the rig is now in East Breaks Block 602, where it is undergoing BOP modifications. Work is expected to take about 60 days, after which the rig will remain in the block for two wells with Anadarko Petroleum in the Nansen field. The rig is operating under a five-year rig sharing agreement between ENI and Anadarko that runs to August 2013. Reports continue to circulate that newbuild drillship ENSCO DS-3 will have a sublet contract signed shortly that will take it out of the US Gulf of ...

Anadarko Petroleum Corporation has issued a letter of intent to Technip for the engineering, construction, and transport of a 23,000 ton truss spar hull for its Lucius field development in the GOM’s Keathley Canyon area. This field is located in approximately 7,100 feet of water. The letter of intent allows Technip to begin preliminary work on the project, including purchase of long-lead items for the hull in advance of the planned sanction date of December 2011.

 

BHP Billiton, a significant player in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, announced that all conditions have been satisfied surrounding the closing of the tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of the common stock of leading onshore independent Petrohawk Energy Corporation for $38.75 per share.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE) will hold the first oil and natural gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico since the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. The proposed Western Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 218 is scheduled to be held in New Orleans on December 14, 2011. The sale will include all available unleased areas in the Western Gulf Planning Area offshore Texas, encompassing about 3,900 unleased blocks covering approximately 20.6 million acres. The blocks are located in water depths ranging from 16 ft to more than 10,975 ft. BOEMRE estimates the proposed lease sale could result in the production of 222–423 million barrels of oil and 1.49-2.65 trillion cubic ft of natural gas.

Total mobile rig utilization in the Gulf of Mexico is unchanged this week. Currently, 57 of 122 rigs are under contract or committed for work, for utilization of 46.7%. Marketed utilization, which excludes cold stacked and other non-marketed US GOM rigs, remains at 80.3%, with 57 of 71 rigs under contract.

 

Within the jackup fleet, overall fleet utilization remains at 38.6%, with 32 of 83 units under contract or committed for work. Marketed utilization holds steady at 72.7%, with 32 of 44 units contracted.

 

Floating rig utilization is also unchanged this week, currently at 75.7%, with 25 of 33 units under contract. Marketed utilization stands at 92.6%, with 25 of 27 rigs under contract.

 

Total Platform rig fleet utilization is unchanged, now with 23 of 52 units under contract, for utilization of 44.2%. Marketed utilization stands at 63.9%, with 23 of 36 units under contract or committed for work.

 

Inland barge utilization increased slightly this week, as one previously idle unit returned to work. Overall, 33 of 59 units are under contract, for utilization of 55.9%, while marketed utilization is now 80.5%, with 33 of 41 units under contract.