Contract Extension on the Ula and Valhall Fields

Smedvig has signed an agreement with BP Norge AS to extend the platform drilling contract on the Ula and Valhall fields in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. The drilling contract has a firm duration of two years, with option for one additional year. The estimated contract value for the firm period is approximately NOK 300 million. The contract, which is expected to employ some 200 people, includes in the first phase production drilling from the Valhall injection platform and the Valhall drilling platform. Smedvig has been the drilling contractor on the Ula field since production start-up in 1986 and the drilling contract on the Valhall field since 2000. "The agreement confirms the company's good long-term relationship with BP and reinforces Smedvig's position as one of the leading platform drilling operators on the Norwegian continental shelf," says Kjell E. Jacobsen, CEO, Smedvig asa.