The new Category J rig will be able to operate at water depths from 70 to 150 metres and drill wells down to 10,000 metres.
It is a tailor-made jack-up rig for operations in harsh environment on both surface and subsea wells in the shallow water segments.
Jon Arnt Jacobsen, chief procurement officer in Statoil.
"Statoil is continuously working to secure a rig fleet with the right capacities and capabilities to suit our needs. We are looking forward to working with Noble Corporation, which will use a new built jack-up rig based on the Cat J design.
"Noble Corporation has per today four operations in the UK, and this new jack-up operation will be handled equivalent to other operations in the UK. This will give Statoil and the license group a fit-for-purpose rig which is important in order to develop the Mariner project in a safe and efficient manner," says Statoil chief procurement officer Jon Arnt Jacobsen.
The contract is for four years with a one- or two-year option. The commencement window is 15 May 2016 – 1 September 2016. The total estimated value for four years is USD 655 million, including mobilisation.
Morten Ruud, vice president for western Europe in Development and Production International in Statoil.
"Mariner is the largest new offshore development in the UK in more than a decade. It will generate jobs and substantial ripple effects for UK and the wider Aberdeen region.
"Statoil together with its license partners JX Nippon Exploration and Production Ltd, and Cairn Energy PLC will contribute to this development in an active way,", says Morten Ruud, vice president for western Europe in Development and Production International in Statoil.
In February, the UK government's Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) approved the field development plan put forward by Statoil and its partners for the Mariner heavy oil field.
The project entails investments of more than GBP 4.7 billion. Statoil expects to start production from Mariner in 2017. The field is expected to produce for at least 30 years. The average production is estimated at around 55,000 barrels of oil per day over the plateau period from 2017 to 2020.
- The Mariner Field is located on the East Shetland Platform of the UK North Sea, approximately 150 km east of the Shetland Isles.
- Statoil acquired 44.44% and operatorship for Mariner from Chevron in 2007. Statoil acquired a further 20.6667% of Mariner from Nautical Petroleum in 2010.
- JX Nippon Exploration and Production (U.K.) Ltd (28.89%) and Alba Resources Limited, (6%) are co-venturers in Mariner. Alba Resources Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cairn Energy PLC.