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Equinor Contracts West Saturn Oil Drilling Rig from Seadrill for 4 Years for US$ 380 Million. The Idea is to Focus on the Drilling Campaign of Six Oil Wells in the Pre-Salt of the Santos Basin, Bacalhau Field
Equinor announced this Tuesday (27) that it has signed a contract valued at US$ 380 million (approximately R$ 2 billion) with Seadrill. The contract is for the company to use the West Saturn oil drilling rig from Seadrill in the drilling campaign of six oil wells in the pre-salt of the Santos Basin, specifically in the Bacalhau field.
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The contract between Equinor and Seadrill is expected to start in the first quarter of 2022 and be extended until the start of production from the oil wells in 2024.
Investments by Equinor
According to Mette Halvorsen Ottøy, Chief Procurement Officer, in this contract with Seadrill, Equinor ensures a fixed rate for the determined starting period, which includes a performance element, allowing the supplier to increase their profit by completing safe and efficient operations.
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Equinor also agrees to the general terms of the options and believes that the contract with Seadrill will provide the Bacalhau oil field in the pre-salt of the Santos Basin with good incentives for the long drilling campaign of the wells.
Other Contracts of the Company
In addition to Seadrill, Equinor contracted in November last year, the companies Baker Hughes, Schlumberger, and Halliburton for oil well services in the Bacalhau field.
According to the Norwegian oil company, the total value of the services is approximately US$ 455 million, with a fixed term of 4 years, which may be extended for an additional 2 years.
Each contract pertains to a different supply, with Baker Hughes covering the drilling and completion of the oil wells, Schlumberger responsible for profiling supply, and Halliburton providing intervention and lining services. For the FPSO, which will be used for production and oil extraction in the pre-salt, the responsible company will be Modec.
Equinor also announced a contract with the Subsea Integration Alliance consortium for the distribution of equipment installed on the seabed.
Company Actions in the Pre-Salt
In the pre-salt of the Santos Basin, the Bacalhau field is Equinor’s largest project outside Norway. The company purchased a 66% stake from Petrobras in the Carcará project for US$ 2.5 billion in 2016.
A year later, in October 2017, after winning the North Carcará block in the 2nd pre-salt sharing auction, the joint venture formed by Equinor, Galp, and ExxonMobil announced the reorganization of the project. Half of Equinor’s stakes in BM-S-8 were sold to ExxonMobil for US$ 1.3 billion.
Source: EPB
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