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This paper will outline how a long term relationship between a contractor and operator that integrates their safety cultures, provides incentives to the parties, and looks for ways to continually improve performance can lead to results that benefit both parties. British Gas (BG) began an exploration program in the West Delta Deep Marine concession offshore Egypt in 1998, and hired the Atwood Oceanics rig Atwood Eagle to drill this initial program. The early exploration program was a success, and led to an exploration, appraisal and development program lasting 4.5 years and consisting of 36 wells drilled and eight wells completed with Atwood Oceanics rigs. The Atwood Eagle drilled 19 wells, the Atwood Southern Cross one, and the Atwood Hunter drilled 16 and completed eight wells. HS&E performance was held in the forefront of the planning and execution of this program, and approximately 1.5 million man hours of rig operations were accomplished without a lost time incident (LTI). Details of how the safety cultures of the companies were seamlessly integrated will be discussed. Also, as part of the drive to improve performance, BG's Total Value Drilling (TVD) initiative was executed for the Scarab Saffron eight-well completion program, the culmination of the entire rig campaign. The teamwork approach to operational improvement gained through the TVD process will be outlined. The cooperation between Atwood Oceanics and BG led to excellent results that included:A combined 1.5 million man hours achieved with three rigs on contract with BG, Rashpetco and Burullus (BG companies) in a challenging deep water drilling and completion environment.Drilling the first deep water exploration well in the area. The campaign included wells in water depths up to 3,430 feet.Best in class drilling performance compared to other operations in the area over 4.5 years without compromising safety.Operations that approached or surpassed the expected technical limit.Hiring and training of local employees into a world class safety program.No damage to the environment

A state-of-the-art mechanized drilling rig has been built to drill development wells on the West Tuna platform, Australia's first concrete gravity structure. This paper discusses how early attention to the design philosophy, effort in preparing the specification, early involvement of operations personnel, and close co-operation between Esso and AOWT during the rig design and fabrication resulted in a cost effective rig. The paper describes innovations to the base design of the pipe racking system and the integrated driller's cabin (from which equipment can be remotely controlled), and the use of techniques such as HAZOPs, human-machine interface and ergonomic studies. Special attention is paid to design enhancement on the rig floor.

As the drilling industry becomes more competitive, one way to gain an edge is to combine the differing strengths of separate parties. Although this idea is not new, combining the efforts of two companies that could be considered competitors in some instances presents new challenges and opportunities.In 1994, a challenging opportunity presented itself to provide a state-of-the-art, mechanized platform rig to operate offshore Australia.The project called for innovations in technical design combined with an in-depth knowledge of the special conditions necessary to work in Australia. To do this, Atwood Oceanics, Inc. and Helmerich & Payne, Inc. combined their separate strengths to provide a superior end product. This paper will discuss the teamwork approach used in this project beginning with the bidding process and continuing through the fabrication phase. The management responsibilities of the partners will be explained with special attention given ·to the organization of the two-company construction team. Finally, keys to success in the integration of two corporate cultures will be discussed.

Atwood Oceanics, Inc. is upgrading two of its third generation semisubmersible units to operate conventionally in up to 5,000' of water. In preparation for these upgrades we asked ourselves: "How do we decide what items to upgrade, and to what extent are these upgrades value added?" This paper will present the process Atwood Oceanics took to determine what upgrades we would undertake, and will summarize our final definition of a "fit for purpose, 5,000' semisubmersible" based on the research. In 1999/2000, Atwood Oceanics, Inc. was in the process of planning an upgrade to the Atwood Eagle from it's existing 2,000'/3,300' water depth rating to 5,000' of water. To prepare the upgrade scope Atwood Oceanics, Inc. researched published specifications of competing units. The data was split into two classes of rigs: 3,500' to 4,000' of water depth rating, and 4,500' to 5,500' of water depth rating. Items reviewed included general particulars, mooring systems, lifting, drilling equipment and mud system. From the research Atwood Oceanics conducted, we developed specifications for a "mid spec" rig in each of these categories. In addition, Atwood decided to go to its clients to get input to what the industry believes a "fit for purpose, 5,000' of water depth drilling unit" is. We met in small groups with some of our clients, and sent a client survey to 14 contacts in nine companies. This paper will include the results of the client survey, the "mid spec" rig specifications developed, how these specifications were converted to an actual upgrade scope, and a discussion of why certain decisions were made. This information should give the industry a good snapshot of value-adding features of drilling units, and may serve as a first-pass tool for rig selection. Introduction Atwood Oceanics, Inc. has been involved in an upgrade program for its drilling units since 1997. Many of these upgrades were performed for specific contracts, and in those cases, the upgrade specifications were driven by the requirements of those particular programs. However, in 1999, when Atwood Oceanics decided that it would upgrade the unit Atwood Eagle (Figure 1) and further upgrade the unit Atwood Hunter (Figure 2) without a contract, the decision of how far to take these upgrades had to be made. The Atwood Eagle is a New Era design semisubmersible that was rated to drill in up to 2,000' of water (3,300' with wire inserts) prior to the planned upgrade. The Atwood Hunter is also a New Era design originally designed for 1,500' of water, and upgraded in 1997 to operate in 3,500' of water. Early on, Atwood set the following strategic boundaries for the upgrades of these units:The water depth for the upgrades will be limited by the use of a spread mooring system. Dynamic positioning would not be considered.In the case of the Atwood Hunter, the upgrades performed in 1997 would be used to the largest extent possible.In the case of the Atwood Eagle, the rig must be able to remain on location, with the riser connected in stand by mode, during a Gulf of Mexico loop current event.We would concentrate on safe, efficient operations with proven technologies. Based on these boundaries, the water depth capability of the upgrades was limited to 5,000', but there were many other decisions that would need to be made before the complete work scope of the upgrade could be decided.