Esgian Rig Analytics Market Roundup (Week 23)

In case you missed it, you can access our previous Rig Market Roundup here.

Contracts 

Transocean has announced contract fixtures for three harsh environment (HE) semisubmersibles. Together, the fixtures represent approximately $161 million in firm contract backlog. In Norway, the 10,000-ft Transocean Spitsbergen was awarded a three-well contract extension with Equinor. The programme is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2025 in direct continuation of the rig’s current programme and contribute approximately $72 million in backlog, excluding additional services. The extension also includes options for up to six additional wells. Furthermore, the 10,000-ft Transocean Norge was awarded a three-well contract extension with Wintershall Dea in Norway. The estimated 140-day programme is expected to start in the first quarter of 2028 in direct continuation of the rig’s current programme and contribute approximately $71 million in backlog, excluding additional services. In Australia, Woodside exercised its second option for the 1,640-ft Transocean Endurance. The estimated 45-day well is expected to start in direct continuation of the rig’s current campaign and contribute approximately $18 million in backlog. Jeremy Thigpen, Transocean’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “These fixtures are emblematic of the continued strength of the high-specification harsh environment market.”

Shelf Drilling has secured a 15-month award for the 357-ft jackup Shelf Drilling Tenacious for drilling operations offshore West Africa. The contract is with Chevron subsidiary, Cabinda Gulf Oil Company (CABGOC). The award will begin in direct continuation of the rig’s current contract, extending the commitment until February 2026. The total added contract value is approximately $66 million. The rig has been working for the same operator in Angola since early 2022 and the unit’s contract was amended to include this 15-month option in May 2023.

Murphy Oil Corporation has exercised an option to extend the contract for the 12,000-ft drillship Noble Stanley Lafosse for a batch of five wells in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The extension is expected to last one year and has an estimated contract value of $177 million. It includes an additional unpriced option for five wells. Noble Stanley Lafosse has been working for Murphy Oil since the second quarter of 2021.

Drilling Activity and Discoveries

South Korea’s president Yoon Suk Yeol has approved the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy’s plan for deepwater oil and gas exploration drilling in the East Sea. He approved the drilling operation after a geophysical study revealed a high possibility of massive reserves of oil and gas beneath the seabed off Pohang. Yoon Suk Yeol said that recent findings, verified by leading research institutes and experts, indicate up to 14 billion barrels of oil and gas may be present. Some results from the exploration drilling are expected by the first half of 2025.

The Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD) has granted OMV (Norge) a drilling permit for an exploration well in the Norwegian Sea. The well 6605/6-1 S Haydn is located in production licence 1194, which is operated by OMV (Norge) in partnership with INPEX Idemitsu Norge and Vår Energi. The water depth at the site is 1,100 meters. The well will be drilled with the 10,000-ft  semisub Transocean Norge, which is under a long-term contract with Wintershall Dea in a rig-share agreement with OMV.

China’s CNOOC Limited has made a deepwater gas discovery in the ultra-shallow gas plays in the South China Sea. The discovery was made a the Lingshui 36-1 gas field, located in western South China Sea, with an average water depth of approximately 1,500 metres (4921 ft). The main gas-bearing play is the Ledong Formation of Quaternary, with an average burial depth of 210 metres (689 ft), CNOOC said. The field has been tested to produce over 10 million cubic metres per day of open flow natural gas. Zhou Xinhuai, CEO and President of the CNOOC Limited, said the successful testing of Lingshui 36-1 further expanded the resource base for the development of a trillion-cubic-metres gas region in South China Sea. “CNOOC Limited will continue to step up exploration and development of hydrocarbon resources in South China Sea and to enhance our capacity of energy supply,” Xinhuai said.

The Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority (Havtil) has given Aker BP consent for exploration drilling in block 6507/5 in the Norwegian Sea. The consent applies to wells 6507/5-A-2 H and 6507/5-A-5 H (prospect name Ærfugl/Tilje), located in production licence 212. The licence is operated by Aker BP with Equinor, Wintershall Dea, and PGNiG Upstream Norway participating as partners. The water depth at the area is 325 meters. For these operations, Aker BP will use Saipem’s 10,000-ft semisub Scarabeo 8, which is under a long-term contract with the operator.

Walter Oil & Gas has received approval to drill an exploration well on Ewing Bank Block 953 in the US GOM with Seadrill 12,000-ft semisub Sevan Louisiana. The rig has been working for Walter Oil & Gas since around April 2024 and is understood to be carrying out plug and abandonment work, followed by well interventions starting in June 2024. Sevan Louisiana is currently the only semisubmersible active in the US GOM.

Demand

Reabold Resources continues to seek partners for its remaining UK licences, P2605 and P2504 (both 100%). However, the company has encountered difficulties in these processes due to the current political uncertainty, a challenge shared by other operators in the country. Earlier this year, Reabold surrendered Licence P2478, which contains the Dunrobin prospect, following delays with licence commitments resulting from the wind farm construction activities in the area. Due to this, there was no longer a clear pathway to acquiring the necessary 3D seismic and subsequently drilling an exploration well on the licence. Meanwhile, Reabold has been working to farm down its remaining high-graded assets to help fund the de-risking and value creation process and these processes continue, however, the UK’s energy profits levy (EPL) and political uncertainty in the country have created difficulties in these discussions, according to Reabold. Licence P2605 is in the Faroe Shetland Basin, approximately 60 km northwest of Shetland, and contains the Laxford discovery and Scourie prospect. Licence P2504 is located in the East Shetland Basin and contains the Oulton Discovery, Oulton West Jurassic Prospect, and Oulton West Eocene Prospect. Both licences are due for a drill or drop decision by November 2024. There seems to be a trend lately where the UK’s fiscal instability and the current political environment are causing delays in oil and gas project sanctioning and farmout deals, as the industry awaits the results of the general elections scheduled for July. UK operator Deltic Energy has also recently stated that the continual tinkering with the EPL and resultant fiscal uncertainty created by the current government, along with recent rhetoric emanating from the Labour Party, have had a severely negative effect on the ability of UK E&P companies to commit to long-term investments in the North Sea. Against this political environment, Deltic has not been able to secure a farm-out partner to help fund its share of the Shell-operated Pensacola appraisal well by the end of May 2024. Shell has therefore granted Deltic until 12 June to progress discussions with potential partners. If it does not succeed, Deltic will have to surrender the licence to JV partners. Against the backdrop of the current fiscal environment and potential tax changes in the UK ahead of the general elections, Ithaca Energy’s efforts to farm down one of the UK’s largest undeveloped resources, the Cambo project, are still ongoing. The decision will follow clarity from the government regarding its fiscal policy.

Shell subsidiary Shell Offshore Upstream South Africa B.V. has applied to drill up to five exploration and/or appraisal wells on Block Northern Cape Ultra Deep (NCUD), a block off the west coast of South Africa in water depths of 2,500 to 3,200 m (8,202 to 10,500 ft). Shell’s associated proposed activities for the block include vertical seismic profiling (VSP), sonar bathymetry surveys, drop core sampling, well testing, and plugging and abandonment of wells. The company has appointed SLR Consulting to manage the environmental authorization process for the proposed drilling project. Block NCUD is between Port Nolloth and Saldanha Bay. Shell’s area of interest for drilling is around 5 254 square km in size.

TotalEnergies and partner APA Corporation are one step closer to making the final investment decision for the Block 58 development. The FID is expected in the fourth quarter of 2024, and the companies are targeting the first oil in 2028. Currently, TotalEnergies is advancing engineering studies for the Sapakara and Krabdagu fields. Recent milestones include an agreement between Staatsolie and TotalEnergies on the field development area, securing the hull for 200,000 barrels of oil per day FPSO unit. Staatsolie has the option to acquire up to a 20% interest upon FID. Currently, there are requirements for eight floaters to explore and develop the area offshore Suriname.

Mobilisation/Rig Moves

ADES’ 400-ft jackup Admarine 501 is being towed to Bahrain’s Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard Company (ASRY). The rig is currently on contract suspension for up to 12 months. In Bahrain, it will join the 250-ft Admarine 262, the 375-ft Admarine 691, and the 400-ft Admarine 502 and Admarine 503. Admarine 262, Admarine 502, and Admarine 691 are performing class recertifications and contract preparations before departing for their new drilling campaigns. Admarine 501 is a KFELS B Class rig that operates in water depths of up to 400 ft.

Stena Drilling 10,000-ft drillship Stena Forth is en route to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands, where the rig will undergo regulatory surveys. Following the yard stay, Stena Forth will head to Morocco for work with Energean. The 2009-built unit had been drilling offshore Egypt for Shell since around August 2023. The rig’s next contract is with Energean offshore Morocco, a one-well job drilling the Anchois East appraisal/development well. Energean also has a one-well option available.

Diamond Offshore’s 10,000-ft semisub, the Ocean GreatWhite, has mobilised from Kishorn Port and returned to the West of Shetland area to resume its contract with bp, which was paused in early February 2024 due to an incident related to the rig’s lower marine riser package (LMRP). As previously reported, the LMRP and deployed riser string unintentionally separated from the rig at the slip joint tensioner ring and the LMRP and riser dropped to the seabed while located approximately 200 km to the west of the Shetland Islands. Diamond retrieved the LMRP to the rig, removed the blowout preventer (BOP) from the secure well, and raised the BOP to the rig. The unit was then moved to the port for repairs and maintenance. Diamond initially expected the rig to return to rate in late April or early May 2024, but later communicated this was expected by the first half of June. Following the beginning of mobilisation from the port on 31 May, the rig arrived at bp’s Schiehallion field on 3 June to resume its contract with bp. The contract is firm into January 2025 with further options thereafter. The rig owner estimated that the unit’s off rate period of 120 to 130 days would result in an aggregate of about $32 million to $35 million in reduced revenue. The company’s loss of hire insurance may provide the company with proceeds of approximately $9 million to $10.5 million.

Environmental activists from Greenpeace have occupied Borr Drilling’s 400-ft jackup Prospector 1 in the Dutch sector of the North Sea, preventing the rig from starting its contract with ONE-Dyas. Following the completion of its P&A work scope for ONE-Dyas in the UK sector of the North Sea, and a subsequent short stay in the Great Yarmouth harbour, the rig mobilised from the harbour to the Netherlands in early June. Once there, it was supposed to work for ONE-Dyas on the N05-A gas field development. The District Court of The Hague had initially halted this project due to a lawsuit, but ONE-Dyas received an updated environmental permit from the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate on 29 May. This allowed the operator to go ahead with the work in the North Sea. The company then sent the rig to the site to start operations. However, five Greenpeace activists on 4 June 2024 boarded and occupied the rig, around 20 kilometres northwest of the German island of Borkum, on the Dutch continental shelf. Activists are calling on the European Union and its member states to ban new fossil fuel infrastructure projects across Europe. Activists claim they are determined to stop the installation of the rig. Meanwhile, environmental organisations and other plaintiffs have also filed another application with the highest Dutch court to stop the construction of the planned platform off the island of Borkum. Platform N05-A is expected to be the first Dutch platform in the North Sea to run directly on offshore wind energy by connecting to the nearby Riffgat wind farm. The plan was to ensure that the first gas is available in December 2024. Project N05-A is part of the so-called GEMS area, an area in the Dutch and German North Sea about 20 to 100 kilometres north of the mouth of the river Ems. The estimated potential of the gas fields is around 50 billion cubic metres of natural gas.

Following a protest by Greenpeace activists, which prevented the installation of Borr Drilling’s 400-ft jackup Prospector 1 and the beginning of a contract with ONE-Dyas, a Dutch court has ordered the suspension of operations until a hearing on appeals has been held. As a reminder, the rig arrived from the UK to the Netherlands earlier this month with plans to start its contract with ONE-Dyas on the N05-A gas field development. The District Court of The Hague had initially halted this project due to a lawsuit, but ONE-Dyas received an updated environmental permit on 29 May, allowing it to go ahead with the work in the North Sea. However, environmental activists from Greenpeace on 4 June occupied the rig, preventing it from starting the contract. The protest was preceded by a request from Deutsche Umwelthilfe, Greenpeace Netherlands, and others on 31 May for an interim measure, demanding that ONE-Dyas’ activities be suspended until a ruling has been made on appeals on the decision of 29th of May. The aim was to prevent ONE-Dyas from carrying out activities before a ruling has been made on appeals. In a ruling on the interim measure request, which was announced on the day of the protest, the company was ordered to halt the installation of the rig at least until 12 June, when a hearing on the matter will be held. During the hearing, a judge will assess whether there is a reason to lift or change the provisional measure taken. This means that ONE-Dyas may not commence the activities covered by the environmental permit, pending the hearing of the case at the hearing of the interim relief judge. Greenpeace activists have therefore ended their protest on the Prospector 1, after eight hours of occupation. The rig is en route to Rotterdam, where it is expected to arrive on 6 June.

Diamond Offshore’s 6,000-ft semisubmersible Ocean Apex has completed its contract with Inpex in Australia and is now en route to start P&A work for Santos. The semisubmersible drilling unit left Inpex’s Bassett Deep 1 well location in the Browse Basin on June 6 and, according to AIS, is being towed to Santos’ Fletcher 5H well to start the P&A campaign. At its current speed, the rig should reach the Fletcher field in about seven days. Santos has a 12-well P&A campaign lined up for the rig, which will be deployed on its Mutineer, Exeter, Fletcher, and Finucane fields within permits WA-54-L, WA-26-L, and WA-27-L. The permit areas are within Commonwealth waters, approximately 160 km (99 mi) north of Dampier, in water depths ranging from 130 to 160 m (427 to 525 ft).

Other News

Abu Dhabi national oil company ADNOC has signed an agreement to award a 3% participating interest in the SARB and Umm Lulu offshore concession to Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR. Previous collaborations between the two state entities include ADNOC acquiring a 30% interest in the Absheron field in the Caspian Sea and a strategic collaboration agreement on the potential development of low-carbon energy technology.

Deltic Energy has been given more time to secure funds for its share of costs on the Shell-operated Licence P2252 and the upcoming Pensacola appraisal well. The large Pensacola discovery is located on Licence P2252 in the Southern North Sea. Shell is the operator with a 65% interest, and Deltic (30%) and ONE-Dyas (5%) are its partners. As previously reported, Deltic has been struggling to secure a partner to help fund its share of drilling costs for the upcoming Pensacola appraisal well, which is on track to be drilled in Q4 2024 with the 400-ft jackup Valaris 123. The company previously had until the end of May 2024 to find a solution and demonstrate its capacity to fund its share of costs. Now, Deltic has been granted a short period of additional time from Shell, which will allow Deltic until 12 June to progress discussions with potential counterparties in relation to a possible transaction. There is, however, no guarantee that discussions will be concluded successfully within that timeframe. In such circumstances, Deltic will be required to withdraw from the Pensacola licence and transfer its interest in Pensacola to its Joint Venture partners.

Equinor is selling its 19.5% interest in production licences PL 048E, which is the Eirin field, and PL 1201 to PGNiG Upstream Norway. With this, the ownership between Equinor and PNGiG in these licences will be balanced with the Gina Krog field located in the North Sea off Norway. The plan for development and operation (PDO) for Eirin was submitted in September 2023 and approved in January 2024. The field will be developed as a subsea facility tied back to the Gina Krog platform. The subsea template is under construction in Egersund and is scheduled for installation in the summer of 2024. Production licence PL 1201 was awarded in this year’s Awards in Predefined Areas (APA). Any discoveries in this licence could make use of Eirin’s infrastructure and be tied back to the Gina Krog platform. The economic effective date for the transfers is 1 January 2024. Closing of the transaction is conditional upon ministry approval.

Shelf Drilling North Sea has received notice from Havtil (Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority) that its application for an Acknowledgement of Compliance (AoC) for the 500-ft jackup Shelf Drilling Barsk has not been accepted. The Shelf Drilling Barsk can only begin its contract with Equinor in Norway, announced in April 2023, once the AoC has been obtained. Shelf Drilling stated it intends to continue constructive dialogue with Havtil in order to obtain the AoC and begin the announced drilling contract. According to information from Havtil, as part of its case processing of Shelf Drilling’s application for the AoC for Shelf Drilling Barsk, the audit was carried out between 13 February and 24 April 2024 with an objective to verify that the company’s maintenance management system operates in compliance with the regulatory requirements. The audit identified non-conformities in the following areas: the AoC application and compliance measurements; technical barriers; operational and organisational barriers; requirements for analyses; competence; security clearance of activities; maintenance; classification; maintenance programme; planning and prioritisation; maintenance effectiveness; systems and equipment; and follow-up. The regulator has asked Shelf Drilling to report on how the non-conformities will be addressed. As a reminder, following the completion of its previous contract with Equinor in late 2023, the rig moved to Mandal, Norway in December for official renaming, management transfer from Noble to Shelf, and contract preparations. The Shelf Drilling Barsk, previously known as Noble Lloyd Noble, was supposed to start its Sleipner Vest contract with Equinor in late May 2024. In April 2024, the rig also secured further work with Equinor after the operator exercised one of two previously agreed options for work at Sleipner Vest and awarded a two-well contract extension at the Gudrun field with options for three further wells.

Ventura Offshore announced Wednesday the first day of trading of the company’s shares on Euronext Growth Oslo, under the ticker code “VTURA”. On 8 March 2024, the company entered into a share purchase agreement with Petroserv Marine Inc. regarding the acquisition of substantially all Petroserv’s assets via a share purchase of Petroserv’s Universal Energy Resources Inc subsidiary. Through the acquisition the company acquired a deep water drilling contractor providing offshore drilling services to the oil and gas industry that has operated in the deep water drilling industry for 25 years. The acquisition was completed on 8 May 2024. The consideration paid on 8 May 2024 to the seller was $281 million. Following the closing of the acquisition, the company now owns and operates one 10,000-ft drillship, Carolina, and one 10,000-ft semisubmersible, SSV Victoria, and manages one 12,000-ft drillship, Zonda, and one 10,000-ft semisubmersible drilling rig, SSV Catarina. To partly finance the acquisition, and for working capital and general purposes following the completion of the acquisition, the company has completed a private placement of 85,000,000 new common shares at a fixed subscription price of USD 2 per New Share, raising gross proceeds of  $170 million. On 19 April 2024, and to finance the remaining part of the acquisition, the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary Ventura Offshore Midco issued senior secured USD 130,000,000 bonds, which are expected to be listed within six months from the date of issue.

Transocean has moved to acquire the remaining interest in a joint venture that owns the 10,000-ft 6th Gen semisub, Transocean Norge. Namely, on 3 June 2024, a subsidiary of Transocean entered into a non-binding letter of intent with certain funds managed and/or advised by Hayfin Capital Management LLP and/or its affiliates for the acquisition by Transocean of the outstanding equity interests in the joint venture that owns the Transocean Norge semisub. Presently, Transocean owns a 33% interest in the Orion Rigco joint venture, an unconsolidated Cayman Islands-exempt company formed to construct and own the semisub, and Hayfin owns the remaining 67% ownership interest. The consideration in the proposed transaction is anticipated to be a combination of ordinary shares of Transocean and senior notes issued by a subsidiary of Transocean. The proposed acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in Norway, and Transocean submitted on 3 June a merger control filing in respect of such approval. Transocean would expect to consummate the acquisition as soon as practicable after obtaining the required regulatory approval. This coincides with a new contract award to the semisub from Wintershall Dea, which extended the rig’s firm term in Norway into Q2 2028.

Waldorf Production UK plc and the wider Waldorf group have been pursuing options to address their ongoing liquidity challenges. However, the ultimate parent company is filing for administration. Although discussions with key stakeholders are ongoing, the company confirmed an event of default has arisen under the 9.75% Senior Secured $300,000,000 Bonds 2021/2024 due to failure to deliver annual financial statement within four months after the end of the financial year. The company further stated that its ultimate parent company, Waldorf Energy Partners Limited (WEPL), has taken steps to file for administration in England, and that its indirect parent company, Waldorf Production Limited (WPL and, together with WEPL, the Holdcos) has announced its intention to appoint administrators. Partners from Interpath Advisory will be appointed as administrators to WEPL and will also be the proposed administrators for WPL. As a result of these steps taken by WPL, a cross default has also occurred under the WPUK Bonds in respect of a guarantee granted by the company’s direct parent company Waldorf Acquisition Co Ltd in connection with the 12% Senior Secured $200,000,000 Bonds 2023/2026 issued by Waldorf Energy Finance plc. The Holdcos have filed for administration on the basis that their financial situation is no longer considered by the directors of those companies to allow them to continue as a going concern. Waldorf Production UK emphasised that neither the company nor any of the operating subsidiaries in the group (including the licensee companies) are filing for administration, and the directors of all such companies expect them to continue as a going concern while ongoing liquidity discussions continue. Waldorf is the operator of the Cheviot field development in the Northern North Sea after acquiring Alpha Petroleum from Shorelight Partners in 2022. Field development evaluation is ongoing, looking at prospectivity and hub situation in the area. As of May 2024, Waldorf continued to evaluate options for potential development, including discussions with nearby host facilities.

Singapore-based Keystone Offshore has entered a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the drilling company of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) Offshore Engineering Co. Ltd (CPOE) for strategic cooperation to promote offshore asset transaction and utilisation jointly. CPOE is mainly providing offshore drilling services and its offshore fleet consists of 300ft F&G L780 Mod II, CP300, DSJ-300, and 400ft JU2000E design jackup rigs. “While CPOE is one of the most important drilling contractors in China domestic market, overseas drilling market is now the major focus of CPOE. The signing of this MoU allows KEYSTONE to market CPOE assets in overseas market. This will allow both companies to reach out to wider pool of potential clients,” Keystone Offshore said.

Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas Ltd. has signed an agreement to farm in and acquire a 75% working interest in Block 1 offshore South Africa from Tosaco Energy, becoming the operator of the block. Eco Atlantic will carry out this acquisition via its subsidiary Azinam South Africa Limited. Tosaco intends to transfer its remaining 25% interest to the newly formed South African entity OrangeBasin Oil and Gas (Proprietary) Limited. Terms of the acquisition are $150,000 payable upon signing, $225,000 payable upon government and title transfer, and $375,000 payable upon a resource report commissioned by Eco Atlantic. The company will carry Tosaco’s remaining 25% interest through the work programme for the first three wells up to an agreed $2.3 million. Block 1 is located in the Orange Basin, along the maritime border with Namibia. Eco Atlantic stated that 2D and 3D seismic data on the block has already been completed and no additional seismic acquisition or drilling is planned in its three- year carried period. Eco Atlantic will carry out interpretation and analysis during this period. In a separate transaction, Eco Atlantic is relinquishing its 50% operated interest in Block 2B offshore South Africa, where the company drilled the Gazania-1 well in 2022. Following acceptance by the Petroleum Agency of South Africa of this relinquishment, Eco Atlantic will have no further liability in respect of Block 2B.

Major contract awards and capital commitments for the NEO Energy-operated Buchan Horst project in the UK North Sea are now expected in 2025, following the receipt of fiscal clarity in the UK after the election, according to Jersey Oil & Gas, one of the project’s partners. This leads to Buchan’s first production being targeted for late 2027, a change from the previous expectation of first production in Q4 2026. Serica Energy, another joint venture partner, recently said that the project’s Final Investment Decision (FID) depends in part on the impact on project economics of expectations for the future tax regime, which will apply through the life of the project. At the time, FID was not expected before the latter part of 2024. Following the recent announcement of an earlier than expected UK General Election in July 2024, the Buchan joint venture partners have assessed the implications and their plan for progressing the project. While activities continue in order for the Buchan project to be ready for FDP approval by the end of this year, the exact timing for achieving this key milestone and enabling project sanction is naturally linked to securing fiscal clarity from the next government and ensuring that the project remains financially attractive. Meanwhile, engagement on the Buchan field development plan (FDP) and associated regulatory consents is progressing to plan with the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) and the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for the Environment and Decommissioning (OPRED). As a reminder, the draft Buchan FDP was submitted to the NSTA in December 2023 and the Environmental Statement (ES) was submitted to OPRED at the beginning of 2024. Jersey stated that, under the current fiscal policy, the company’s valuation of the Buchan redevelopment project does not materially change as a result of the later first production date. Andrew Benitz, Jersey Oil & Gas Chief Executive Officer, commented: “With a UK General Election now announced, we are hopeful that fiscal clarity will be forthcoming in short order so that the industry can continue to do what it does best, namely investing in major capital projects that deliver vital low carbon homegrown energy and highly skilled jobs.”

Hungarian company MVM Group has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Azerbaijani state owned company Southern Gas Corridor CJSC for the acquisition of a 5% stake in the production sharing agreement for the Shah Deniz offshore field in the Caspian Sea and a 4% stake in Azerbaijan Gas Supply Company Limited, which markets natural gas from Shah Deniz. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2024. Shah Deniz is a natural gas-condensate field is on the deepwater shelf of the Caspian Sea. The Shah Deniz project is set up as an unincorporated joint venture partnership operated by BP with a 29.99% interest. Lukoil, TPAO, and NICO also hold interests in the joint venture.

The Norwegian Ministry of Energy has announced three areas in the North Sea for companies to apply for exploration licences related to CO2 storage on the Norwegian continental shelf. Several commercial companies have made inquiries to the ministry with desire regarding awards of one or more specific storage areas. These inquiries form the basis for the areas now being announced. Announcement and possible allocation of area for a storage permit will take place after individual application. The permitting process is initiated by companies by applying for permits according to the storage regulations, after having established that they have a sufficiently good basis for applying. The application deadline is August 29th, 2024 at 12:00 p.m. The award of exploration licences will normally be done with a work programme including one binding phase and subsequent conditional phases with decision points for the continuation or relinquishment.

About two years after making a comeback to the Oslo Stock Exchange (Oslo Børs), offshore drilling contractor Seadrill Limited is now delisting its common shares from the exchange. In a notice for the 2024 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders on 21 March 2024, Seadrill proposed to approve an application by the company to the Oslo Stock Exchange for the delisting of its common shares. Seadrill board believes that delisting will eliminate regulatory duplication, complexities, and costs associated with administering a dual-listing regime, consistent with continued corporate efforts to simplify the business. For that reason, the board recommended that the common shares be delisted from the exchange. The general meeting was held on 17 April and the resolution to apply for delisting was passed. As a result, on 20 April, Oslo Børs received an application from Seadrill for the delisting of the company’s shares from Oslo Børs. On 7 June, Oslo Børs decided to delist the shares of Seadrill from trading and the shares will be delisted as of 10 September 2024. The last day of listing will be 9 September. The company remains listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Image credit: Transocean