New jackup drilling rig Prospector 1 has arrived in the Cromarty Firth, after a two-month journey from its construction shipyard in Dalian, China.
Jackup drilling rig Prospector 1
Offshore staff
ABERDEEN, UK– New jackup drilling rig Prospector 1 has arrived in the Cromarty Firth, after a two-month journey from its construction shipyard in Dalian, China.
Owned byProspector Offshore Drilling, the jackup features a fully automated drilling system and represents an investment of over $200 million. The rig’s platform measures 231 ft by 250 ft (70 m by 76 m) – the size of four Olympic swimming pools. Its full height is almost 775 ft (236 m). The rig is capable of operating in nominal water depths of up to 400 ft (122 m) and is equipped to drill wells to a depth of 35,000 ft (10,668 m) in high-pressure and high-temperature environments.
It is the first of six rigs Prospector Offshore Drilling has ordered, with an estimated total project cost of approximately £750 million ($1.2 billion).Prospector 1 was built by Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore Co. It was transported to the Cromarty Firth on Dockwise’s heavy lift vessel, the Talisman. It will be floated off the vessel over the next two to three days before being jacked-up in the Cromarty Firth. It will soon begin operations in the Central North Sea for Total E&P UK Ltd.
