Keppel bags Brazilian semisub contract

Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M), through Keppel FELS Limited (Keppel FELS), has secured a $385 million repeat order to build a semisubmersible drilling rig for Brazilian oil and gas exploitation and production company Queiroz Galv?o Óleo e G?s (QGOG). This price excludes the drilling and subsea equipment which will be supplied by QGOG.

To be named Alpha Star, this deepwater platform will be built to the DSS 38 design jointly developed by Keppel O&M?s technology arm Deepwater Technology Group and Marine Structures Consultants of The Netherlands. This latest rig is a repeat order of the first semisubmersible, Gold Star, which was awarded to Keppel FELS in August 2006. Gold Star will support Petrobras? growth plans while Alpha Star may be deployed in either offshore West Africa or South America, when they are delivered in the second half of 2009 and of 2011 respectively.

An innovative and cost-effective design, the DSS 38 semisubmersible drilling rig is designed to meet the operational requirements in the deepwater ?Golden Triangle? region, comprising Brazil, Africa and the Gulf of Mexico. The DSS 38 is rated to drill to depths of 30,000 feet below mud line in just over 9,000 feet water depth. It is 103.5 metres in overall length, with a main deck size of 69.5 metres by 69.5 metres. Its operational displacement is approximately 38,000 tonnes and it will have accommodation facilities to house a crew of up to 130 men. It has both vertical and horizontal riser storage. The eight 3000 kW azimuthing thrusters configuration are designed to keep the vessel in position. All configurations comply with the ABS?s Dynamic Positioned System (DPS-2) requirements.

Besides the two DSS 38 for QGOG, Keppel FELS is also constructing three DSS 21 rigs for Maersk Contractors and one DSS 51 rig for Transocean. The DSS series of semisubmersible rigs is jointly designed by Keppel O&M?s Deepwater Technology Group and Marine Structures Consultants of The Netherlands.