Yantai CIMC Raffles Offshore Ltd has completed the mating of the upper hull & topsides to the lower hull of the Frigstad Deepwater Rig Alfa, which is the first of two Ultra Deepwater semi-submersible drilling units which were ordered by Frigstad Deepwater Ltd in December 2012.

The operation was marked at a ceremony in Yantai on Thursday, June 25, 2015, in the presence of guests from China and abroad including among others government officials, industry leaders and directors, management and workers from rig owner, yard and their subcontractors.

At close to 18,000 metric tonnes, the lifting operation carried out by the Taisun crane is, according to Figstad, one of the heaviest lifts ever undertaken by a conventional crane.

The rig is of the Frigstad D90 design, developed by Frigstad Engineering. The first rig of the Frigstad D90 design was delivered in 2011 and is currently operating offshore West Africa.

The construction supervision and marketing as well as subsequent operation of the rigs is being managed by Frigstad Offshore. The rigs are scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2016 and the first half of 2017.

Simen Skaare Eriksen, CEO of Frigstad Offshore, said: “It is a challenging market for offshore drilling rigs these days, and therefore we are particularly pleased to see that CIMC Raffles is taking pride in delivering top quality workmanship. And more than ever, the oil companies are dependent on value-adding solutions to realise their large scale drilling projects.

“We want to be an enabler for our customers, and with these rigs we believe that we have just the right tool for the job, bringing efficiency and versatility to a whole new level.”

Source: www.offshoreenergytoday.com

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