Pacific Drilling News

Multiple training and personnel safety failures led to a 2020 worker casualty on board the Pacific Khamsin drillship in the Gulf of Mexico, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) said in a recent report..A rig crewmember was killed on August 23, 2020 while assisting his team in breaking out bolts and pulling riser joints to the surface as the Pacific Drilling drillship crew prepared to secure the well and evacuate the location ahead of incoming storms. The drillship was under contract with Total E&P USA, conducting well operations in Garden Banks Block 1003, approximately 174 miles offshore Louisiana at the time of the incident.A panel comprised of BSEE subject matter experts…

Offshore drilling rig contractor Seadrill has filed for bankruptcy protection at a court in the U.S. state of Texas, it said on Wednesday, the second time in four years the company has entered into so-called Chapter 11 restructuring.The Oslo-listed group controlled by Norwegian-born billionaire John Fredriksen returned to court along with several subsidiaries after failing to win consent from bank lenders to postpone payments on $5.7 billion of debts.Its total debts and liabilities…

Offshore drilling firm Pacific Drilling and certain of its subsidiaries have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy with the aim to eliminate $1.1 billion debt.The company, which had previously filed for Bankruptcy in 2017, said Friday that it and certain of its domestic and international subsidiaries had filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.Pacific Drilling…

Deepwater drilling rig contractor Pacific Drilling has found more work for its Pacific Sharav drillship.The drilling company on Wednesday revealed that Murphy Oil had hired the drillship for work offshore Mexico. According to the fleet status report, Murphy has agreed to charter the unit for two firm wells and one optional well.The day rate for the 2014-built drillship has been set to $230,000, and the contract is expected to start in November and last until February 2021.Pacific Drilling on Wednesday said that its fourth-quarter 2019 contract drilling revenue was $33.1 million compared to $54.3 million in third-quarter 2019. The decrease…

Pacific Drilling  announced that a special purpose wholly owned subsidiary of the Company intends to offer $700 million aggregate principal amount of senior secured first lien notes that mature five years following their issuance, subject to market conditions.The notes are being offered in connection with the restructuring of Pacific Drilling as part of the First Amended Joint Plan of Reorganization filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on August 31, 2018.The net proceeds of the offering will be funded into an escrow account  established and maintained by the Escrow Issuer. If Pacific Drilling’s proposed Plan is confirmed and certain other conditions are satisfied on or before December 22…

Offshore oil drilling and service companies, hurt by the energy industry's shift to lower-cost shale and away from deepwater projects, are dominating the year's energy bankruptcies in North America, according to law firm Haynes and Boone. There were fewer oilfield service companies seeking protection this year than last but those that did have had larger debts. Through October, 44 oilfield services companies filed for bankruptcy in the United States and Canada owing creditors $24.8 billion, compared with 72 companies and $13.48 billion for all of 2016.

In its First-Quarter 2014 results Pacific Drilling announces revenue of $225.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2014, as compared to revenue of $200.5 million for fourth-quarter 2013 and $175.0 million for first-quarter 2013. Net income for first-quarter 2014 was $22.2 million or $0.10 per diluted share. Net income for first-quarter 2013 was $15.1 million or $0.07 per diluted share. CEO Chris Beckett said, “We delivered our fifth consecutive quarter of increasing revenue. Cash flow from operations reached a new high, and EBITDA exceeded $100 million for the first time. However, we have room to improve. Regarding the market for ultra-deepwater drillships…

Pacific Drilling says that the latest in its fleet of 5 of new ultra-deepwater drillships is in service. Two additional drillships are under construction at Samsung Heavy Industries for delivery in 2014, and an eighth rig is under construction for delivery in March 2015. Pacific Drilling is a fast growing company that says it is committed to becoming the industry’s preferred ultra-deepwater drilling contractor.

Pacific Drilling S.A. sign a $1 billion senior secured credit facility agreement to finance construction of the Pacific Sharav & Pacific Meltem. The term loan made pursuant to the credit facility will have a maturity of 5 years from the delivery date of the Pacific Meltem. A portion of the funding will be provided before delivery of the vessels, with all drawdowns from the facility subject to satisfaction of customary conditions precedent. The transaction was led and structured by Citibank and DNB, and supported by the Norwegian export credit agencies Garanti-Instituttet for Eksportkreditt (GIEK) and Eksportkreditt Norge AS. Also acting as Mandated Lead Arrangers were ABN AMRO, ING, SEB and Standard Chartered Bank.

None of Pacific Drillings ultra-deepwater drillships are affected by a recent BSEE safety alert. Concerning the recent U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) safety alert regarding GE connectors and bolts, the company reports that none of Pacific Drilling’s rigs are covered by the directive to suspend operations. However, Pacific Drilling is proactively inspecting the Vetco ExF H-4 LMRP connector bolts on each of its rigs as operations allow. The company has the necessary spare bolts to address any issues detected during inspection. Currently, all of the company’s rigs are operating normally, and no direct revenue implications are expected as a result of this directive.

Pacific Drilling exercises contract option for Samsung Heavy Industries to construct another Ultra-Deepwater Drillship. The drillship will have a rated water depth of 12,000 feet, be equipped for 40,000 feet drilling depth, have accommodation for 200 personnel and be equipped to support dual gradient drilling. The total cost, excluding capitalized interest, will be approximately $620 million and delivery is scheduled for March 16, 2015. Financing for the construction of this rig is expected to be provided by a combination of cash flows from ongoing operations and long-term debt. “We are extremely pleased to announce the order of our eighth ultra-deepwater drillship,” stated Pacific Drilling CEO Chris Beckett.

Pacific Drilling S.A. agrees with Samsung Heavy Industries to extend an option to construct an eighth ultra-deepwater drillship. The contractual option has been extended until January 18, 2013, on the same commercial terms, including delivery scheduled for the first quarter of 2015. Pacific Drilling says it is a fast growing company that is committed to becoming the industry’s preferred ultra-deepwater drilling contractor. Their fleet of seven ultra-deepwater drillships will represent one of the youngest and most technologically advanced fleets in the world. The company currently operates four recently delivered drillships under customer contract and has three drillships under construction at Samsung, two of which are under customer contract.

Pacific Drilling's ultra-deepwater drillship the 'Pacific Khamsin' contracted by a subsidiary of Chevron Corporation for operations in West Africa. The minimum duration of the contract is for an initial two-year term, with contract commencement expected by end of the third quarter of 2013. The contract provides for an option, to be exercised at the client’s discretion prior to shipyard delivery of the drillship, which could result in an additional year of contract term. Estimated maximum contract revenues related to the initial two-year term, including mobilization and demobilization, are expected to be approximately $527 million, bringing Pacific Drilling’s total contract backlog as of November 15, 2012, to approximately US$3.4-billion.

Pacific Drilling Services, Inc. has signed a contract with ABS Nautical Systems to implement the NS5 Enterprise Hull Inspection module on four of its drill ships through the ABS Offshore Newbuild Program. The Houston based company will also receive Survey Planning Documents for each drill ship. The primary intent of this document is to identify areas of the hull structure that are to be surveyed, which can then be used as a means for maintaining compliance with classification. Pacific Drilling Services will utilize these tools on their newest drill ships, laying the foundation for sound hull integrity for the entire service life of their vessels.

Rolls-Royce awarded contracts worth over £70-million to supply large thrusters for offshore drilling vessels. These latest orders, which include options for additional thrusters, are from a variety of customers who are expanding their drillship fleets and are driven by greater demand in oil and gas exploration in deep water and harsh conditions. These high specification drillships operate in dynamic positioning (DP) mode, using satellite technology to automatically maintain position without anchoring. This places a heavy responsibility on thruster performance and reliability.

ABB recently won an order worth $80 million from Samsung Heavy Industries to supply energy efficient drives, motors and electrical power systems for five drilling vessels and two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers to be built at Samsung’s shipyard in Korea. The vessels will be used to extract, process and transport oil and gas. The order was booked in the second quarter of 2012. Samsung Heavy Industries, a branch of the giant South-Korean holding, focuses its shipyard business on a wide range of large vessel types, including LNG carriers, drill ships and semi-submersible drilling rigs.

ABB's order, worth $80 million from Samsung Heavy Industries, is to supply energy efficient drives, motors and electrical power systems for five drilling vessels and two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers to be built at Samsung’s shipyard in Korea. The vessels will be used to extract, process and transport oil and gas. Samsung is building five drill ships (three for Seadrill Ltd. in Norway, one for Pacific Drilling S.A in Brazil and one for Ensco Plc in the UK) and two LNG carrier vessels for Golar LNG Ltd in the UK. The vessels will be used for oil and gas exploration and the transportation of liquefied natural gas. ABB will deliver the complete electrical system for the seven vessels…

Pacific Drilling S.A. Pacific Sharav is scheduled for delivery by Samsung Heavy Industries in Korea in the fourth quarter of 2013, upon completion of construction and client requested modifications. The drillship will be capable of operating in water depths of up to 12,000 feet and drilling wells up to 40,000 feet deep. The Chevron will require the drillship to operate in the Gulf of Mexico. Estimated maximum contract revenue, including mobilization and client requested modifications, is expected to be approximately $1,076 million, bringing Pacific Drilling’s total contract backlog as of June 22, 2012, to approximately $3.2 billion. Pacific Drilling CEO Chris Beckett stated, “We are proud to announce the expansion of our relationship with Chevron to include a third drillship.

Athens Group made three announcements: the opening of their office in Geoje, South Korea, two management promotions relative to their geographical expansion, and a major hiring initiative designed to meet the growing demand for their risk mitigation and problem remediation services for control systems on offshore assets. More high-specification assets are under construction in the Keppel FELS, SemCorp, Daewoo, and Samsung shipyards than there have been at any other time. The Geoje office was established to enable Athens Group to provide their customers who are located in Asia and working in the region’s shipyards with faster, more tailored, and more cost-effective Drilling Technology AssuranceSM Services for control systems.

Rolls-Royce has received orders worth over $160 million to supply propulsion systems for offshore construction and drilling vessels. The ships will be built at shipyards in Asia for a range of ship owners including Sea Drill, Pacific Drilling, Noble, Ocean Rig and Pride. These vessels will carry out drilling operations in deep water oil and gas fields.  Each ship will feature multiple thrusters, which will be used to propel the vessels to and from drill sites and to maintain their position during drilling operations. The orders announced today also include options to supply additional thrusters.

Chevron Corporation announced that the Pacific Santa Ana, a deepwater drillship built to Chevron's specifications, has arrived in the Gulf of Mexico to work for Chevron under a five-year contract with a subsidiary of Pacific Drilling S.A. It is the first drillship designed with the capacity to perform dual gradient drilling (DGD). Unlike conventional deepwater drilling, which uses a single drilling fluid weight in the borehole, dual gradient drilling employs two weights of drilling fluid – one above the seabed, another below. This allows drillers to more closely match the pressures presented by nature and effectively eliminates water depth as a consideration in well design.

Athens Group announced a 64% increase in year-over-year revenue for 2009 as well as a 225% increase in booked business for 2010. Athens Group is experiencing a growing demand for its Drilling Technology Assurance (DTA) Services on newbuilds and existing fleets as drilling contractors and operators become increasingly aware of the need for control systems and software engineering expertise on today’s high-specification assets. In 2010, Athens Group’s Proven Practices Methodology will be used by a growing base of customers to reduce Non-Productive time (NPT) and improve safety during all phases of the rig lifecycle including construction, operations, annual audits, and refurbs.

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE:RIG) announced that the newbuild ultra-deepwater drillship Dhirubhai Deepwater KG2, which is owned by a joint venture with Pacific Drilling Limited, has commenced operations for Reliance Industries in India under a five-year drilling contract. The dynamically positioned Dhirubhai Deepwater KG2, one of 24 Ultra-Deepwater Floaters in the Transocean fleet, includes the most advanced drilling capabilities in the offshore drilling industry. The vessel features National Oilwell Varco drilling packages, significant off-line tubular-handling and stand-building capabilities, advanced mud system designs, systems for building, storing and running several subsea trees and efficient riser and BOP (blowout preventer) handling systems.