Valaris, an offshore drilling services provider, has secured a new long-term contract for 12 wells offshore West Africa.
The contract is for the company’s VALARIS DS-7 drillship, which will be activated for the job.
With a duration of around 850 days, the contract is anticipated to begin in the second quarter of 2024.
The total contract is valued at $364m.
The contract does not involve the delivery of any additional services and only calls for a few customer-specific enhancements to the rig.
Valaris president and CEO Anton Dibowitz said: “This most recent award represents the seventh contract awarded to one of our high-quality floaters requiring reactivation since mid-2021 and speaks volumes about our demonstrated track record of project execution when reactivating rigs and delivering operational excellence for our customers.”
Concurrently, Valaris announced plans to raise its 2023 share repurchase goal from $150m to $200m.
In May the company revealed its plans to buy back shares worth $150m this year, and to date the company has purchased $91m in shares.
“As a result of this attractive contract award and our continued commitment to returning capital to shareholders, we are increasing our 2023 share repurchase target from $150m to $200m,” Dibowitz added.
Last month, the company announced multiple new drilling contracts in the Gulf of Mexico and offshore Australia.
The contracts were for its semi-submersible VALARIS DPS-5 drillship, heavy-duty jackup VALARIS 107 and heavy-duty ultra-harsh environment jackup VALARIS 247.
