Stena Drilling Secures Contract with Shell UK

Shell, a major oil company in the UK, and offshore drilling contractor Stena Drilling have agreed to a new contract for the use of Stena Don, a semi-submersible drilling rig.

According to Stena, the work is scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2023 and have a firm scope of 1 year, with the possibility of extending the contract for an additional one year in direct continuation from the firm scope.

According to the rig owner, work will be done in the UKCS, and drilling development wells will be combined with plugging and abandonment activity.

“The contract award with Shell UK is fantastic news for Stena Drilling, securing long-term work for the Stena Don on an exciting collection of projects with Shell UK in the North Sea,” said  Stena Drilling CEO Erik Rønsberg

The Stena Don is a semi-submersible drilling rig with a maximum operating depth of 1640 feet, can hold up to 140 crew members, and can operate in difficult environments. In 2001, Kvaerner Warnow Werft Shipyard in Germany constructed it.

For the use of the Stena Don in the UK North Sea, Stena Drilling has a new contract with Petrofac. It was decided that the 80-day contract will begin in the fourth quarter of this year in support of a single-firm well campaign on Gannet E field of Tailwind Energy.