Rig deal expected to create 100 jobs

A£12.4 million deal to buy a semisubmersible drilling rig is expected to create about 100 jobs at Aberdeen-based decommissioning specialist Well-Safe Solutions.

The rig, WilPhoenix, is currently warm-stacked in Invergordon.

It has been there since last autumn, following work on an exploration well on Ithaca Energy’s Fotla prospect in the UK North Sea.

Before that it was used for drilling a third production well on Serica Energy’s Rhum field.

Well-Safe said it expected to take delivery of the rig in June, and would carry out optimisation and recertification requirements for future well plug and abandonment (P&A) activity.

The vessel will be renamed Well-Safe Defender.

Well-Safe was launched in 2017 to provide a groundbreaking approach to safe and cost-efficient decommissioning.

WilPhoenix is the firm’s third asset purchase in three years – the Well-Safe Guardian and Well-Safe Protector started operations during 2021.

Phil Milton, chief executive of Well-Safe, said: “The addition of our second semi-submersible rig, to be known as the Well-Safe Defender, is a landmark achievement for the business.

“Strong demand for our other dedicated P&A semisubmersible rig, the WellSafe Guardian, demonstrates a clear business case for the need for further specialised assets.

“We are very pleased to have reached an agreement with Awilco Drilling to integrate this well-regarded asset into our portfolio.”

He added: “The addition of a third specialist decommissioning rig enables Well-Safe Solutions to deliver upon our vision of being the industry’s trusted welldecommissioning service partner of choice, and is in line with the company’s long-term growth strategy.”

Well-Safe said the new jobs would be in a variety of onshore and offshore roles, in addition to the 231 personnel already employed by the company.

Built in 1983, WilPhoenix is equipped for drilling in water depths up to 1,200ft.

It has a long track record in the North Sea and was “extensively” refurbished and upgraded in 2016.

The sale “memorandum of agreement” is for the asset only, meaning offshore workers are not transferring over from Awilco and Well-Safe will undertake a recruitment drive.

Awilco’s only other vessel, WilHunter, is in the process of being sold for recycling, leaving the company with no assets.

WilHunter has lain idle for years in the Cromarty Firth after finishing decommissioning work for Hess in the second quarter of 2015.

Oslo-listed Awilco, founded in 2009, is headquartered in Westhill, near Aberdeen.

As of last August, the company had about 20 employees in Westhill, plus around 100 offshore staff.

Norwegian industrial investment firm Awilhelmsen Group is Awilco’s largest shareholder.

FUTURE VISION: Well-Safe Solutions is to take delivery of WilPhoenix to further boost decommissioning capabilities.

Phil Milton, chief executive of Well-Safe Solutions.