Norway-based Sevan Drilling has stopped construction work on a cylindrical drilling rig being built by China-based Cosco Shipyard as Sevan considers canceling the contract.
Sevan said in its second quarter results that marketing the ultra deepwater platform, called the Sevan Developer, has been challenging.
The contract was signed in 2011.
The delivery date for Sevan Developer was initially scheduled for April 2014 but Cosco recently said the rig would be delivered in October 2014.
The construction has been hit with multiple critical equipment delivery delays from Cosco subcontractors.
The delivery delay may allow Sevan Drilling to cancel the order or push the delivery date back to give the company more time to market the rig.
“Given the current market it is, however, doubtful whether a sufficiently long delay in the delivery date can be agreed on satisfactory terms,” Sevan Drilling said.
The Sevan Developer is based on the same design used for the other three rigs Sevan Drilling owns.
