Equinor Energy has taken up options covering two more wells on Odfjell Drilling’s semi-submersible, moving the firm end date of the Deepsea Atlantic contract to late in the fourth quarter of 2027.
Odfjell Drilling confirmed the extension on 16 October 2026. The new work will follow the existing assignment without a break, using the rates established at the outset. Equinor still holds two further well options with prices already agreed.
Upstream reported that the rig is currently working on the UK’s Rosebank project. The October disclosure does not identify the fields or locations for the newly confirmed wells.
This option exercise follows an extension agreed in January 2025 that secured work through the second quarter of 2027 and added about $148 million to Odfjell Drilling’s backlog. That figure relates to the earlier agreement; the October announcement gives no value for the newly exercised options.
Deepsea Atlantic resumed work in August 2026 following a 106-day off-hire period caused by an equipment-handling incident. A blowout preventer and part of the riser string fell to the seabed in April. Nobody was injured, and Odfjell Drilling said there were no signs of environmental damage. The dropped preventer was recovered, and the rig underwent repairs and received a spare unit before returning to operations.
Delivered in 2009, Deepsea Atlantic belongs to the sixth generation of rigs and is equipped with dual derricks and dynamic positioning. It is designed to drill in deep water and harsh conditions, with a rated operating water depth of 3,000 m and a drilling depth rating of 10,670 m.
