Finally, a jack-up rig for CI

Kay Cashman

Petroleum News

After years of efforts by several leaseholders, a jack-up rig is coming to Alaska’s Cook Inlet. On April 15 Blake Offshore announced it had signed a three-year, $156 million contract with Pacific Energy Alaska for Blake jack-up 151.

The Louisiana-based offshore rig contractor said the jack-up is expected to be mobilized for transport in December, and begin drilling in the spring.

Pacific Energy Alaska, a subsidiary of California-based Pacific Energy Resources, plans to drill its Corsair prospect first, followed by Escopeta’s Kitchen prospect, Pacific Energy Chairman and CEO Vladimir Katic told Petroleum News April 17.

The rig, currently under contract to Linder Oil in the Gulf of Mexico, was completely refurbished in 2006 and can operate in water depths of 11 to 250 feet, Blake said.

If its three-well exploration program proves successful, Pacific Energy, which purchased all of Forest Oil’s Alaska assets in 2007, could begin permitting commercial production at Corsair as early as late 2012.