Exxon Mobil Corp is looking to sign a contract for a Transocean Ltd rig capable of drilling in Arctic waters that will cost up to $1 billion to build, according to a person familiar with the rig.

The new rig could be deployed to places such as Greenland, Iceland or
offshore Alaska, and command a rate in the range of the record $650,000
per day that Transocean, the largest offshore rig contractor, secured
in mid-2008 for a five-year deepwater contract that starts next month,
the person said.

Executives and analysts say Arctic offshore drilling will become more
attractive for big oil companies as pricier crude supports more
expensive extraction and with so many onshore reserves in the hands of
state firms or in volatile regions.

Many extractive resource groups and shipping companies have their eyes
on the Artic’s potential as an increase in melting ice leaves more open
water each summer.

Transocean Chief Executive Bob Long said in September, without giving
details, that his company could announce a new arctic-class rig with a
contract by the end of 2009. A few analysts, after meeting Transocean
management late last year, put the cost of the rig at somewhere
approaching $1 billion.

A final decision on the new Transocean drillship had been expected last
month, but Exxon was busy working out its $30 billion deal to buy XTO
Energy Inc, the person said.

An Exxon spokeswoman and a Transocean spokesman both declined to comment on Thursday.

But on its website, Exxon says: “ExxonMobil has a portfolio of
significant Arctic opportunities, with ongoing studies spanning the
range of exploration, project feasibility assessment and planning, and
technology development.”

Source: Reuters

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