Jurong Shipyard, a subsidiary of SembCorp Marine achieves a significant milestone today when the newly constructed semi-submersible rig will be officially named .GlobalSantaFe Development Driller II. by Lady Sponsor, Mrs Yvette Sprague, wife of Mr Jonathan Sprague, the Atlantis Wells Delivery Manager of BP.
The GlobalSantaFe Development Driller II is the second of two Friede and Goldman ExD-designed fifth-generation dynamic positioning ultra deepwater semi-submersible rig built by Jurong Shipyard for GlobalSantaFe Corporation (GSF), a leading worldwide oil and drilling contractor. The first unit, .GSF Development Driller I. was earlier named on October 12, 2004 by Mrs Christina Bruton in a
christening ceremony held in the shipyard.
On April 2001, Jurong Shipyard in collaboration with sister company PPL Shipyard entered into a fixed price agreement with GlobalSantaFe Corporation for the construction of two units of Friede & Goldman ExD-designed deepwater semi-submersible drilling rigs. Valued at US$285 million each, inclusive of equipment, project management and other services furnished by client, the scope of work entails furnishing labour and materials to design, construct, equip, complete, test and deliver to GSF these drilling units.
The fast-track newbuilding of GSF Development Driller II represents an engineering feat in the region, with work commenced in November 2002 and delivery scheduled in the first quarter of 2005. The semi-submersible drilling rig was built using Jurong Shipyard's breakthrough "Load-out and Mating-in-Dock" method, involving the simultaneous construction and subsequent skidding and mating of the upper and lower hulls. Through this innovative, world.s first technique, and leveraging from the experience gained from building the first semi-submersible, Jurong Shipyard was able to speed up the rigbuilding process, while meeting high quality and safety standards.
Development Driller II, measuring 98.82m (length) x 78.68m (beam) x 36.0m (height, keel to deck), is capable of drilling in water depths up to and beyond 7,500 feet. Engineered to meet the requirements of drilling in the challenging deepwater arena, it is designed for stability and versatility, with 18,000 square feet of useable deck space, 46,000 tons of operating displacement and more than 7,000 metric tonnes of variable deck load. The rig is also equipped with unique station-keeping abilities, comprising a stand-alone dynamic positioning system and a self-contained eight point mooring system, and multiple activity features to enable simultaneous operations on the drill floor, in the moon pool and on the main deck.
Mr Wong Weng Sun, Managing Director of Jurong Shipyard said .The naming of GSF Development Driller II represents a significant advance in Jurong Shipyard.s entry into the highly sophisticated semi-submersible rig building market.
GSF Development Driller II and sister rig Development Driller I are among the most technologically advanced drilling rigs in the world. The construction success of these two rigs is a testimony of Jurong Shipyard.s rig building forte and the efficacy of the shipyard.s .Load-out and Mating-in-Dock. technique..
On delivery, GSF Development Driller II will be deployed on a three-year charter to British Petroleum (BP) for developmental work on the company.s Atlantis project in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.