Rowan Christens New Jackup Joe Douglas

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Rowan Companies proudly showed off its new jackup rig, the Joe Douglas, during a christening ceremony Monday at its Sabine Pass, Texas, dock.

The Joe Douglas has 2.5 million pounds of hookload, an 80 feet cantilever reach, a 375' water depth rating and 491 feet of leg length. The jackup rig is equipped with seven Caterpillar 3516 engines, providing 15,050 total horsepower, and three LEWCO 3000 HP mudpumps provide a maximum pressure of 7,500 psi.

Joe Douglas is the third of the LeTourneau 240-C Class jackup rig. Sister rigs include the Rowan Mississippi, which went into service in 2008, and Rowan Ralph Coffman, which went into service in 2009.

The Company began construction of the initial 240C class rig, the Rowan Mississippi, in 2007. The 240C was designed to be a significant upgrade of the original 116-C class, which was the "workhorse" of the global drilling industry since its introduction in the late 1970s.

In early 2009, Rowan halted construction on the Joe Douglas due to the 2008 downturn in the credit markets, downturn in jackup drilling markets, and flood damage caused by Hurricane Ike across the Gulf Coast from Texas to Mississippi. By July of 2009, Rowan re-commenced construction of the Joe Douglas with anticipated delivery by third quarter of 2011.

The jackup rig was named in honor of Rowan employee Joe Douglas for his 32 years of dedication and service to the company. Douglas progressed quickly through Rowan's ranks, while mastering drilling technology and teaching others to use it safely and efficiently. He was one of Rowan's first international employees, spending most of his time in Central and South America, and was instrumental in establishing Rowan's Mississippi connection by recruiting, hiring and training employees in the region.

Douglas' two daughters, along with their husbands and children, attended the ceremony in his honor.

The Joe Douglas is expected to drill it's shakedown well in mid-January for a U.S. Gulf-based independent. The rig also has an LOI from McMoRan for one deep gas well in the Gulf of Mexico.

Source : http://www.rigzone.com