Transocean wins $188M ultra-deepwater drillship contract extension

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) +1.6% pre-market Wednesday after saying it secured a 365-day contract extension for the Deepwater Asgard drillship with Hess (HES) for work in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

Transocean (RIG) said the program is expected to commence in direct continuation of the rig’s current program and is estimated to contribute $188M in backlog.

With a maximum drilling depth of 40K ft, the Deepwater Asgard is able to operate in water depths of up to 12K ft.

Earlier this week, Transocean (RIG) disclosed it agreed to sell the Deepwater Nautilus ultra-deepwater floater and associated assets to an unnamed buyer for $53.5M.

The company expects the sale will result in a Q2 non-cash charge of $140M-$150M.