AS Norske Shell has contracted the Borgland Dolphin semi-submersible for the drilling and completion of a gas producer well on the Knarr field on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS), drilling contractor Dolphin Drilling reported Thursday.

“We appreciate the trust Shell has placed on us by commissioning the Borgland Dolphin for this project,” Dolphin Drilling CEO Bjørnar Iversen said in a written statement emailed to Rigzone. “Shell is a strategic client for us and we look forward to a long-term relationship with the company. This is proof Dolphin Drilling and its assets are capable of working with anyone.”

Dolphin stated the Shell work will start in February after two projects in the U.K.’s Central North Sea conclude: drilling operations for i3 Energy on the Liberator oilfield and then the Serenity prospect. The Borgland Dolphin owner contends the semisub may have set a new standard for fastest rig turnaround for the i3 contracts, moving from smart stacking to operational mode in 70 days.

For the NCS deployment on Knarr, Dolphin stated that it will work under Shell’s One Team system with integrated drilling and completions providers in an approximately 1,476-foot (450-meter) water depth.

“The Borgland Dolphin is a highly efficient rig with an excellent performance record,” concluded Iversen. “Its layout is ideally suited for optimized drilling and completion work and we look forward to securing more activity on the Norwegian Continental shelf, the U.K. Continental Shelf and further afield internationally.”

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