Maersk Drilling has decided to decommission the rig Maersk Endurer from the fleet and recycle the rig with Zhoushan Changhong International Ship Recycling in China.

“Given the current market situation and the over-supply of drilling rigs in the offshore market, there is a strong need to retire older rigs. Therefore, Maersk Drilling has decided to decommission its oldest rig in the fleet, Maersk Endurer,” says Morten Pilnov, Head of Global Sales in Maersk Drilling.

The rig will be transported to Zhoushan Changhong International Ship Recycling mid-July 2015, and it will take approximately 15 weeks to recycle the rig.

“It is Maersk Drilling’s ambition to decommission Maersk Endurer in a safe and responsible way with minimal environmental impact. Therefore, Maersk Drilling has chosen Zhoushan Changhong International Ship Recycling to recycle Maersk Endurer. Maersk Drilling has furthermore engaged Sea2Cradle to carry out inspections and supervise the entire process,” Morten Pilnov explains and continues:

“We chose this option because we consider it to be the safest and most cost-effective approach, with the lowest environmental risks. Zhoushan Changhong International Ship Recycling is a state-of-the-art rig recycling facility, and the facility complies with the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships and the European Union Ship Recycling Regulation.”

The Maersk Endurer is Maersk Drilling’s oldest rig in the fleet. The rig is a jack-up rig, and it was built in 1984, and has latest been working offshore Cameroun.

About Maersk Drilling

Maersk Drilling’s modern fleet counts 22 drilling rigs including drillships, deepwater semi-submersibles and high-end jack-up rigs. Further, Maersk Drilling has one ultra harsh environment jack-up rig under construction. Maersk Drilling employs an international staff of 4,500 people and generated a profit (NOPAT) of USD 478m in 2014.