Good response to Cairn six-rig tender in Rajasthan
Cairn India is believed to have received a good response to its tender to hire six rigs to drill development wells at Rajasthan block RJ-ON-90/1 which holds the producing Mangala, Aishwariya, Bhagyam and Raageshwari Deep fields.
By the close of business on December 17 bids were expected from John Energy, Essar Oilfield Services, Quippo, Weatherford, Halliburton, Deep Industries, COFOR and others. However, this could not be independently confirmed.
Cairn has divided the tender into two packages: Package-I for two ‘firm’ rigs with 1500-hp capacity each, one ‘firm’ rig of 1000-hp capacity and another ‘optional’ rig of 1500-hp capacity; Package-II for one ‘firm’ rig of 1000-hp capacity and one ‘optional’ rig of 1000-hp capacity. “These rigs should be equipped to move quickly between locations,” says a driller.
Successful bidder(s) will get a firm three-year contract with two optional six-month extensions. Importantly, Cairn has inserted a clause in the tender document, sent only to pre-qualified drillers, saying the contract term is subject to government approval of its drilling plans.
What could the rates in this tender be? “Domestic day rates for a standard 1500-hp rig these days is around $30,000 and for a 1000-hp rig it is around $15,000,” says a driller. “But Cairn wants highly-mobile, fast-moving rigs so rates could be higher.
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