Abu Dhabi's ADNOC Drilling extends alliance with Helmerich & Payne with 'rig enablement framework' deal

Dubai: ADNOC Drilling has entered a ‘rig enablement framework agreement’ with the US company Helmerich & Payne, Inc., which incidentally is also a shareholder in the Abu Dhabi firm.

The agreement will advance ADNOC Drilling’s land rig operational performance, as well as support ambitious growth and expansion plans. The latest deal builds on the ‘asset purchase agreement’ and ‘IPO cornerstone agreement’ announced on September 8. H&P designs, fabricates and operates high-performance drilling rigs.

“By sharing global best practices and further optimizing our world-class rig fleet, this agreement turbocharges ADNOC Drilling’s significant competitive advantage, enabling us to further capitalize on and cement our leading position as the largest national drilling company in the Middle East and the only national drilling company that offers start-to-finish well services,” said Abdulrahman Abdullah Al Seiari, CEO of ADNOC Drilling.

Biggest to date

ADNOC Drilling’s IPO was the largest-ever listing on ADX, raising over $1.1 billion. The offer was oversubscribed more than 31 times. As a cornerstone investor, H&P committed $100 million to the offer, subject to a three-year lock-up period.

"The finalization of the Rig Enablement Framework Agreement now provides further opportunity to build on this strategic relationship and combine our capabilities to deliver exceptional operational performance," said John Lindsay, H&P’s President and CEO.