CAMAC Energy has terminated its contract with Northern Offshore International Drilling Company for the use of the drillship Energy Searcher offshore Nigeria.

Northern was notified on 7 January that CAMAC had elected to terminate the contract with immediate effect for “Northern’s repudiatory breach of contract and other material breaches of the drilling contract by Northern. These breaches have caused significant damages and loss, including delay damages and wasted spread costs to the company. CAMAC is considering all legal options to enforce its rights under the contract”.

The operator’s deepwater Oyo field drilling and completion operations are now being conducted by Transocean’s Sedco Express semisubmersible rig, which arrived on location at OML 120 last month. Production is expected online by the end of this quarter.

The rig is to drill the Oyo-7 and Oyo-8 horizontal development wells, plus one other, possibly to drill CAMAC’s first Miocene-target exploration well.