A contract for a drilling rig designated for the waters off the eastern coast of Canada is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter, Transocean said Wednesday.
Transocean said it secured a one-year contract extension with Husky Oil to lease its harsh-environment Henry Goodrich rig for $100 million.
"The contract is expected to commence in the fourth quarter of 2018," Transocean stated.
Transocean's announcement came less than a week after Dwight Ball, the provincial leader of Newfoundland and Labrador, announced a frontier agreement with Husky and the Canadian subsidiary of Norwegian energy company Equinor for the Bay du Nord project.
First oil from Bay du Nord is expected in 2025 from a basin that holds about 300 million barrels of oil. The provincial government expects $2.7 billion in revenues from Bay du Nord and Ball said last week's handshake marked the start of "the future of our offshore" industries.
Husky is also working to develop the West White Rose project off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. First oil is expected by 2022 and the company expects the project to reach its production capacity of 75,000 barrels of oil per day three years after it's brought online.
Husky's total offshore production in the second quarter averaged 65,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Husky announced a decision last year to move forward with the West White Rose development using the Sea Rose floating production facility. The company said the project will cost about $2.2 billion to start production.
The first discovery at White Rose was made in the 1980s and a series of discoveries at its periphery have improved development prospects
Four years ago, however, the provincial government of Newfoundland said some of the reserve basins may be past their prime and it would require long-term commitments from the industry to help the area recover.
