By VINCENT WEE
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SEMBCORP Marine has won a hefty US$247 million ultra-deepwater rig contract from SeaDragon Offshore unit Gander Drilling, with an option to build a second unit.
SembMarine's Jurong Shipyard subsidiary will outfit, furnish, equip, test and complete a six-column bare-deck hull that was built in a Russian yard.
The hull is expected to arrive in Singapore this month and the completed rig is scheduled for delivery by end-2010.
The semi-submersible rig - a Moss Maritime CS50 MkII sixth-generation design - is new to Jurong Shipyard. The yard's previous semi-submersibles have used the tried and tested Friede and Goldman ExD Millennium Class designs.
The latest rig has a DP3 standard dynamic positioning system, which is one level above the usual DP2 standard that most offshore vessels use. DP3 features extra systems and safeguards to ensure safety in rough conditions.
The rig is designed for harsh environment work and will have a water depth rating of 10,000 feet and a maximum drilling depth of 30,000 feet. The rig's harsh environment ability gives it the flexibility to operate worldwide.
SeaDragon has already secured a five-year charter contract with Mexico's Pemex for the unit.
Negotiations on the optional second rig are ongoing, and it is believed the work may bring a better price once SeaDragon secures a firm charter for the unit.
'These are trying times for the industry,' said Jurong Shipyard's offshore division senior general manager Don Lee. 'We are pleased SeaDragon has chosen Jurong, based on our excellent track record. This order shows there is selective market demand buoyed by increasingly strong fundamentals.'
SembMarine expects the contract to contribute positively to earnings in FY2009 and FY2010. Its shares jumped 9 per cent to close 18 cents higher at $2.15 yesterday.
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