Maersk Contractors wins Gulf of Mexico drilling contract

Maersk Contractors wins Gulf of Mexico drilling contract Maersk Contractors USA Inc., part of Denmark’s A.P. Moller-Maersk Group, has been awarded a four-year drilling contract by Statoil Gulf of Mexico LLC for the lease of a deepwater development semi-submersible to operate in the Gulf of Mexico.
   The contract will commence when the rig arrives in the summer of 2008.
   The rig designated for the Gulf of Mexico is the first in a series of three deepwater development semi-submersibles under construction for Maersk Contractors in Singapore, which will be capable of drilling 10,000 meters (30,000 feet) into the subsoil and able to operate in water depths up to 3,000 meters (10,000 feet).
   'We have delivered a number of projects to Statoil over the years in Norway and enjoyed a very good cooperation. We now look forward to expanding this relationship to the Gulf of Mexico,' said Claus V. Hemmingsen, Maersk Contractors' chief executive officer.