Turan Drilling & Engineering Co. LLC  has been awarded its first contract, which is with BP Exploration (Caspian Sea) Ltd., the company said on April 16.

The contract has a value of approximately $500 million for the firm period or $700 million including all options, and is for the operations and maintenance of seven platform drilling rigs operated by BP in the Caspian Sea pursuant to product-sharing agreements. These are the East, West and Central Azeri, deepwater Gunashli, West Chirag, Chirag and Shah Deniz installations. The initial term is for five years with two one year extension options.

Formed in July 2018, Turan Drilling & Engineering is a joint venture between KCA Deutag and SOCAR AQS. It is jointly owned by the two companies and combines KCA Deutag’s expertise as a world leading drilling and engineering contractor with SOCAR AQS’s unrivalled knowledge, experience and infrastructure in the Caspian region.

“KCA Deutag has worked in the Caspian for a number of years now, and we are delighted BP has recognised the strength of our new Azerbaijani joint venture with the award of this substantial contract to Turan Drilling & Engineering,”  Norrie McKay, CEO of KCA Deutag, said.

“The Caspian onshore and offshore drilling and engineering market continues to be highly active, and we believe that our local presence puts us in a strong position to take advantage of other business development opportunities as they arise.”