Maersk Drilling Names Fourth UDW Drillship

Introducing, Maersk Voyager. Photo (c) Maersk Drilling

Maersk Drilling’s fourth ultra deepwater drillship was named Thursday morning in a ceremony held at the Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) shipyard in Geoje, South Korea. Lene Berg, wife of Gregers Kudsk, Vice President in Maersk Drilling, had the honour of naming the drillship Maersk Voyager.

Maersk Voyager is the fourth in a series of four ultra deepwater drillships, which were ordered in 2011 and represent a total investment of USD $2.6 billion.

Maersk Voyager is scheduled to be delivered from SHI in Q4 2014 and remains without a first contract.

“The short term floater market is challenged, but we remain in discussions with several oil companies regarding short term as well as long term drilling campaigns for the Maersk Voyager ,” says Claus V. Hemmingsen, CEO in Maersk Drilling and member of the Executive Board in the Maersk Group.

PHOTOS: Maersk Viking – Maersk Drilling’s First Ultra Deepwater Drillship

Featuring dual derrick and large subsea work and storage areas, the design allows for efficient well construction and field development activities through offline activities. With their advanced positioning control system, the ships automatically maintain a fixed position in severe weather conditions with waves of up to 11 metres and wind speeds of up to 26 metres per second. Special attention has been given to safety on board the drillships. Equipped with Multi Machine Control on the drill floor, the high degree of automation ensures safe operation and consistent performance. Higher transit speeds and increased capacity will reduce the overall logistics costs for oil companies.

Maersk Drilling took delivery of the first drillship in the series, Maersk Viking, in February 2014, and the drillship has since been mobilized to the U.S. Gulf of Mexico where it has three year contract with ExxonMobil. The second drillship, Maersk Valiant, was delivered in April and will commence a three year contract with ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) and Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE: MRO), also in the U.S. Gulf. Meanwhile Maersk Venturer, the third drillship in the series, is expected to be delivered this year and is also awaiting its first contract.

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