Seadrill has signed a US $662m contract with LLOG Bluewater Holdings for its newbuild drillship West Neptune to work for the independent in the Gulf of Mexico.

The contract duration is a minimum of three years plus an option for a 1-year extension at mutually agreed rates. Seadrill says the potential revenue for the primary contract term is approximately $662m.

The West Neptune is expected to be delivered from the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in Geoje, South Korea in early June 2014. The rig will be outfitted to work in up to 3,048 m (10,000 ft) of water, but is capable of working in water depths of up to 3,658 m (12,000 ft) and drilling wells to a depth of 11,278 m (37,000 ft).

Fredrik Halvorsen, CEO and President of Seadrill Management Ltd., said: “This award complements our expanding deepwater operations in the area with Seadrill’s fleet growing to six ultra-deepwater units within the US and Mexican GoM over the next 18 months. In addition, this contract brings Seadrill’s order backlog to $20.9 Bn. We continue to experience strong demand for premium ultra-deepwater rigs and expect to further increase our backlog and earnings visibility in the next months as our additional ultra-deepwater units under construction secure term contracts.”

Scott Gutterman, President and CEO of LLOG, added: “The West Neptune will be the first dual BOP rig in the Gulf of Mexico for LLOG. LLOG will initially utilise the rig to perform completions of our Delta House wells. Having two BOPs will allow LLOG to complete our wells efficiently saving up to 12 days per completion.”