Rendering of a cat D rig. Click to enlarge.

The specially-designed category D rig is able to operate at water depths up to 1300 meters (4,265 feet) and drill wells down to 8,500 meters (27,887 feet). Statoil intends for the new cat Ds to be workhorses on mature fields, primarily for drilling production wells and well completion. The goal is that the new rig will perform operations 20% more effectively than the conventional rigs.

The rig is designed for mid-water segments on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), but is also applicable in other regions. The rig concept can easily be converted for work in deep water, high pressure high temperature (HPHT) operations and arctic regions.

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co (DSME) in South Korea will build the rigs at a fixed price of US$570 million per unit, inclusive of optional Statoil upgrades that include Barents Sea winterization and other enhancements. The drilling package will be delivered by Aker Solutions. The first unit is due for delivery from Korea February 2014 and the last unit will be delivered in May 2015.

The cat D rigs are the building blocks in Songa Offshore's long-term strategy of advancing its position in the harsh waters of the North Sea and the Barents Sea. Songa Offshore will operate three semisubmersible rigs for Statoil from second half of 2012 and with the delivery of these four new cat D rigs in 2014/15, Songa Offshore will take a lead role in the region with a total of seven rigs carrying out exploration and production drilling for Statoil and its partners.

—Asbjørn Vavik, CEO of Songa Offshore SE

The 20/80 payment terms are staggered by the delivery schedule. Statoil has granted Songa Offshore a bridge financing for the 20% down payment to DSME that is based on standard market terms and conditions. Further construction costs will be funded from a combination of ongoing cash flows in addition to traditional bank loan financing.