HAMILTON, Bermuda--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Seapulse Limited (“Seapulse”), the recently launched global oil and gas exploration vehicle, is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with Maersk Drilling A/S (“Maersk Drilling”). The alliance plans to drill 12 offshore oil & gas exploration wells over the next two years targeting over four billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe).
Seapulse is executing on an innovative investment strategy adopting a low-cost, high-impact portfolio approach to exploration in order to maximise value creation and diversify risk. The scale of the Seapulse drilling programme rivals that of many super-majors by number of wells and potential scale and impact of the target prospects, but with a considerably compressed timeline and cost exposure. The wells will be testing prospects with estimated recoverable resources in excess of four billion boe1 with significant further running room in the event of success.
By design, the exploration wells to be drilled in the programme span diverse play types and basins in both frontier and established areas. The size and diversity of the portfolio provides a significant de-risking element. Maersk Drilling joins the alliance to deliver best-in-class drilling services and act as integrated well services provider, which will allow a strong focus on programme synergies and cost management to maximise potential success outcomes.
The target portfolio has been developed over a number of years by several selected leading E&P companies using latest generation seismic data and interpretive technologies in conjunction with their operators and licence partners. Seapulse has secured the right to participate in this extensive and diverse range of potentially high-impact wells. By focusing investment specifically on providing the necessary capital for drilling, Seapulse is addressing a significant gap in the market, addressing the inherent industry inefficiencies associated with the traditional Farm-in/out processes. Seapulse will additionally benefit from utilising an integrated service provider approach whilst potentially accelerating high upside value creation for all stakeholders.
Seapulse Co-founder and CEO, Scott Aitken, commented:
“The business model we have established has the promise to be transformational for the oil and gas industry, by optimising the risks and rewards associated with exploration drilling. Our strategy leverages Maersk Drilling’s technological and operational expertise, whilst giving access to a cherry-picked global prospect portfolio, creating a sustainable approach to offshore exploration. Seapulse’s strong financial backing gives us the critical advantage of being able to drill and test a statistically de-risked exploration portfolio normally only associated with super-major oil companies.”
Seapulse Co-founder and Chairman, Erik Tiller, commented:
“We are delighted to partner with Maersk Drilling as we take this exciting step. We believe, through our willingness to challenge traditional industry paradigms, this new model reflects a sustainable and attractive investment approach to exploration.
Seapulse’s unique model addresses oil and gas companies’ need to maintain a sufficiently material portfolio whilst managing costs. The global portfolio exploration approach offers value exposure to multiple opportunities and reduced exploration outcome risk. We look forward to collaborating with stakeholders who will share in both the risks and rewards from our collaborative drilling programme.”
Maersk Drilling CEO, Jørn Madsen, commented:
“This alliance is a key example of a fully integrated service delivery model aimed at eliminating inefficiencies by aligning incentives and removing complexity across the entire value chain. This allows Maersk Drilling to leverage our proven track record of delivering wells safely and efficiently – thereby mitigating operator cost risk whilst sharing in the commercial upside of the program. The ambitious global drilling programme will utilise Maersk Drilling’s young and versatile fleet of drilling rigs to explore an extensive prospect portfolio.”
1Independently audited Gross pMean Prospective Resources (SPE)
About Seapulse Limited
Seapulse Limited is a global oil and gas exploration investment company co-founded in 2018 by Seacrest Group and I-Pulse, Inc. Working with leading industry partners, such as Maersk Drilling, Seapulse is focussed on executing on portfolio drilling programmes, targeting high upside returns.
About Maersk Drilling A/S
Maersk Drilling designs, develops and operates a global fleet of advanced drilling rigs using cutting-edge technology and know-how. Our modern fleet counts 24 drilling rigs including drillships, deepwater semi-submersibles and high-end jack-up rigs. We create value with our customers through a unique service delivery concept where we customise safe, efficient and consistent drilling services. We build our service around our highly skilled and committed workforce, our state of the art offshore drilling rigs and our 40 years of experience operating in the most challenging environments.
