Oslo-listed rig contractor Odfjell Drilling might have to rest half of its rig fleet by the end of the year after shutting down one of its drillships.

Downturn in drilling for Odfjell

Norway

OSLO, May 22, 2015 – Oslo-listed rig contractor Odfjell Drilling might have to rest half of its rig fleet by the end of the year after shutting down one of its drillships. A lack of new contracts and low oil prices has led to a downturn in the soft drilling market.

Odfjell Drilling has announced the shut down of its drillship Deep Sea Metro II, which is used in ultra-deepwater. The drillship completed its contract with Brazil’s national oil company, Petrobras, with a dayrate of $433,000.

With imminent ends to contracts with Statoil and BP, the future is uncertain for Odfjell’s semi-submersible rigs Deepsea Atlantic and Deepsea Stavanger.

Odjfell signed a contract worth $40 million for short-term drilling off the coast of Vietnam for its Deepsea Metro I drillship earlier in May. The contract called for a low dayrate of $286,000.

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