China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) will tie up with US engineering design firm Friede & Goldman to develop
China's first deep-water semi-submersible drill platform.
CNOOC said the two companies signed a contract in late November and will jointly hold intellectual property rights put into the new rig.
The rig is expected to cost about 4.5 bln yuan and will be delivered to CNOOC in October 2010 for use in the South China Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, and West Africa, among other locations, it said.