Perenco Hires Valaris Rig For Southern North Sea Drilling Campaign

Perenco UK has contracted Valaris 247 jack-up rig for a minimum of three new drains within the existing Ravenspurn gas fields in the Southern North Sea. The rig is scheduled to move onto location in January 2023 in preparation for drilling and completion activities, which are expected to take around 180 days.

Valaris 247, formerly known as Gorilla V, is an Enhanced Super Gorilla Class rig built by LeTourneau Industries, Mississippi in 1998.  It is designed and outfitted to operate in water depths of up to 400 ft (122 m) and can drill to depths of 35,000 ft (10,668 m).

The rig will drill three challenging deviated wells, starting with a Ravenspurn North side track.  All three wells will produce through existing Perenco-operated facilities (offshore platforms and pipelines) into Perenco UK’s Dimlington Terminal on the east coast of England, enhancing the UK’s home-grown gas supply and reducing the country’s reliance on imports.

“These activities are consistent with Perenco UK’s commitment as a safe and responsible operator to the North Sea Transition Deal, supporting energy security compatible with Net Zero targets,” Jonathan White, Perenco UK’s General Manager, said.

Perenco owns and operates the largest infrastructure on the UKCS, comprising 45 offshore platforms, 14 subsea wells, and a network of more than 1940 miles of pipelines connected to its two onshore terminals at Bacton and Dimlington where the gas is received, treated, metered, and then exported into the UK National Grid.

The company is responsible for over 10 percent of the entire UKCS well stock and has more than 200 wells permanently producing wells across 40 gas fields; Leman, Indefatigable, LAPS, Trent, Cleeton including Wollaston, Whittle, Ravenspurn North and Ravenspurn South, West Sole comprising West Sole, Hyde, Hoton and Newsham fields and the Amethyst field. West Sole recently celebrated 50 years of continuous production and still produces 6,300 boepd.

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