Equinor has taken up options for two more wells with Odfjell Drilling’s Deepsea Atlantic, extending the semisubmersible rig’s work into late in the fourth quarter of 2027. Splash 247 reported that the additional drilling will follow directly from the existing contract, keeping the 2009-built unit employed without a break between the current commitment and the newly confirmed wells.
The two wells will carry the rates established in the original contract, although the financial value of the latest extension was not disclosed. Equinor still holds priced options for another two wells, according to Splash 247. Those options offer a further route to prolong the rig’s employment, but are separate from the work confirmed in the latest announcement.
The new commitment follows an extension agreed in January 2025 that had secured work for Deepsea Atlantic through the end of the second quarter of 2027. That agreement increased Odfjell Drilling’s backlog by approximately $148m. The figure excluded escalation fees, integrated services, performance bonuses and fuel incentives, and relates to the January agreement rather than the two wells now added to the schedule.
Under the previous contractual timetable, the rig was due to continue on its existing terms until the middle of 2026 before entering the extension period. Splash 247 said the earlier deal covered 23 months and was worth about $290m. It formed part of a wider agreement between Equinor and Odfjell Drilling, both of which are Norwegian companies.
The January 2025 extension provided four priced options covering one well apiece, alongside three further optional periods of roughly a year each. Rates for those longer periods remain subject to agreement. If the remaining options are exercised, Deepsea Atlantic could stay under contract into 2030. The latest two-well commitment continues a relationship dating back to 2009, when the rig began working for Equinor.