French supermajor TotalEnergies has extended the contract for the semi-submersible drilling rig Deepsea Mira, which has been conducting appraisal work offshore Namibia.
The rig has been operating under contract in Namibia, carrying out production test work at the Venus-1A appraisal well.
Rig owner Northern Ocean said the contract has been extended for 180 days into the fourth quarter of 2024.
The extension according to Northern Ocean, provides an additional revenue backlog of between N$1.3 billion (US$68 million) and N$1.4 billion (US$75 million) for the Oslo Stock Exchange-listed company.
The initial contract with TotalEnergies had a firm duration of 300 days, including two extension options for the French oil company.
This comes as the French energy giant has allocated almost 50% of its global exploration budget of N$5.5 billion (US$300 million) to Namibia this year, aiming to confirm the multibillion-barrel discovery in Block 2913B (PEL 56) located in the Orange Basin.
Block 2913B covers approximately 8,215 km² offshore Namibia. TotalEnergies serves as the operator with a 40% working interest, in partnership with QatarEnergy (30%), Africa Oil’s Impact Oil and Gas (20%), and Namibia’s NAMCOR (10%).
The Venus discovery is a light oil and associated gas field situated in the Orange Basin, approximately 290 kilometers off the coast of southern Namibia, and at a water depth of around 3,000 meters.
