China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) group and Reignwood group of China signed a newbuilding contract for 2+2 drillships on September 21st.
CSSC-affiliated Shanghai Shipyard is in charge of engineering, procurement and construction of the drillships with delivery by Q1 2014, which is the first newbuilding order won by its own intellectual property rights.
According to industry sources, OPUS Offshore, a subsidiary of Reignwood group, has jointly proceeded research and development with Shanghai Shipyard on the drillships for the past two years.
Officials from CSSC introduced Shanghai Shipyard to be one of the most authoritative shipbuilders in offshore division in China, having built the first semi-submersible platform in China.
Meanwhile, the recently ordered series of TIGER drillships, with ABS classification and 150-accommodated, are 160 metres long and will be equipped to operate in water depths up to 3,000 feet (915 metres) upon delivery, but can be upgraded for work in depths up to 5000 feet. They will be able to drill wells up to 10,000 metres.