Maersk Drilling’s plans to expand its presence in the ultra-deepwater Gulf of Mexico are moving on swiftly, with the company’s newbuild drillship Maersk Viking formally named at Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI)’s shipyard in South Korea.

The drillship is destined to start drilling for US major Exxon Mobil late this year under a 3-year contract with the operator. Maersk Viking is the first in a series of four ultra-deep drillships that will enter Maersk’s rig fleet, and represent a total investment of US $2.6 billion by the Danish contractor. The units will be delivered from SHI’s shipyard in late 2013 and 2014.

After delivery from the yard and mobilisation to the US Gulf, the Maersk Viking will begin drilling for Exxon Mobil in a contract with an estimated value of $610 million including mobilisation, but excluding cost escalation and performance bonus.

“With the contract for Maersk Viking we look forward to continuing our relationship with Exxon Mobil, and establishing ourselves as a significant drilling contractor in the US Gulf of Mexico,” said Claus V. Hemmingsen, CEO of Maersk Drilling and member of the Executive Board of the A.P. Moller – Maersk Group.

Maersk Drilling has been active in the GoM since 2009 using the ultra-deepwater semisub Maersk Developer. With Maersk Viking and the second newbuild drillship, Deepwater Advanced 2, to enter the US GoM, Maersk says it is becoming a significant drilling contractor in the region, which together with West Africa are its target regions for deepwater activities.

Growing its business activities in the ultra-deep market is part of Maersk’s strategy to deliver its financial profit goal of $1 billion in 2018.

The design and capacities of the new drillships include dual derricks and large subsea work and storage areas, with the design also allowing for efficient well construction and field development activities through offline activities. Their advanced positioning control systems will also enable the vessels to automatically maintain a fixed position in severe weather conditions with waves of up to 11 m (36 ft) and wind speeds of up to 26 m (85 ft) per second. Equipped with multi-machine control systems on the drill floor, this high degree of automation will ensure safe operation and consistent performance, added Maersk. Higher transit speeds and increased capacity will also reduce the overall logistics costs for oil companies, it said.

Offshore