Transocean’s 12,000-ft drillship Deepwater Thalassa is sailing from the Bahamas to Mexico ahead of a long-term development drilling programme for Woodside at the deepwater Trion field.

The rig spent roughly a month in Freeport undergoing contract preparations before departing. Operations are scheduled to start later in March 2026, with the Trion drilling campaign running from March 2026 through February 2029.

In its most recent quarterly report, Woodside said Trion remains on track for first oil in 2028. Beyond drilling, the operator is also preparing to begin installing subsea umbilicals, risers, flowlines and the gas gathering line.

Delivered in 2015, Deepwater Thalassa is a DSME 12000 design unit. The Trion job will be the rig’s second operator contract, following its work for Shell in the US Gulf of Mexico and offshore Colombia from 2016 to early 2026.

The mobilisation also marks the first drillship activity in Mexican waters since Shell drilled there using Noble Voyager from late 2022 to mid-2023.