New Offshore Drilling Contracts and Sales for Valaris

New York-listed offshore driller Valaris has secured a significant five-well contract for one of its drillships in West Africa. The contract, awarded to the 2014-built Valaris DS-15 drillship by an undisclosed client, is set to commence in the third quarter of 2026. With an estimated duration of 250 days, the contract is valued at approximately $135 million, inclusive of upfront payments for rig upgrades and mobilization. The agreement also includes priced options for up to five additional wells, spanning 80 to 100 days.

Anton Dibowitz, President, and CEO of Valaris, expressed excitement about the contract, emphasizing the rig’s enhancement with a managed pressure drilling system and the company’s strengthened presence in West Africa for future opportunities.

Additionally, Valaris announced the sale of its 27-year-old Valaris 247 jackup, operating offshore Australia, to BW Energy for around $108 million in cash proceeds. The transaction, expected to close in the second half of 2025, includes restrictions on the rig’s usage by BW Energy outside of its affiliated properties.

Meanwhile, BW Energy’s acquisition of a jackup for conversion into a wellhead platform on the Maromba development offshore Brazil is underway. The project entails converting the drilling jackup into a platform with up to 16 well slots and flowlines, connected to the redeployed FPSO BW Maromba (formerly Polvo). The FPSO refurbishment and life extension are currently in progress at the COSCO yard in China.

In a recent fleet status update, Valaris reported a contract backlog increase to approximately $4.2 billion from $3.6 billion as of February 18, 2025. The backlog excludes lump-sum payments like mobilization fees and capital reimbursements.