Noble Secures $560M in Rig Deals, Backlog Hits $6.7B
October 30, 2026
Offshore drilling contractor Noble Corporation has secured approximately $560 million in new rig contracts across Africa, South America and Norway since its July fleet status report, bringing its contracted backlog to $6.7 billion.
The awards span six drilling rigs and include exploration, development drilling, plug and abandonment (P&A) and light well intervention work, with several campaigns scheduled to begin in 2027, as of October 26, 2026.
Among the new contracts, the Noble BlackRhino secured a four-well campaign with TotalEnergies in Nigeria, expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026 and last approximately 150 days, with options for six additional wells.
The Noble Faye Kozack was awarded a five-well contract with Tullow in Ghana, scheduled to begin in mid-2027, with an estimated duration of 250 days and options for five additional wells.
In Norway, the Noble Interceptor secured a one-well contract with DNO, expected to begin in the third quarter of 2027 and last between 50 and 90 days.
The rig is then expected to move directly into a long-term P&A campaign for ConocoPhillips at the Ekofisk field, with an estimated duration of 670 days.
The Noble Intrepid also secured work in Norway, winning a one-well contract with ORLEN expected to begin in the third quarter of 2027 and last between 40 and 60 days.
Elsewhere, the Noble BlackHawk was awarded a one-well contract with Apache in Uruguay, expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2027. The campaign has an estimated duration of 50 days and a contract value of approximately $25 million, excluding mobilization and demobilization fees.
The Noble Globetrotter I secured a two-well contract with Occidental in Peru, expected to begin in the second quarter of 2027 at a dayrate of $400,000, plus a mobilization fee.
Following that campaign, the rig is expected to begin work for TotalEnergies in West Africa under a three-year Capacity Reservation Agreement (CRA) for light well intervention services, with a minimum commitment of 150 days annually. The first call-off order is expected to commence in Angola in the third or fourth quarter of 2027.
Rig Backlog Grows as Utilization Improves
The recent awards have added approximately 44 months of floater backlog and 26 months of jack-up backlog, Noble said in its third-quarter results announcement.
Leading-edge dayrates for Tier-1 drillships ranged from the mid-$400,000s to $500,000, while rates for ultra-harsh jack-ups ranged between $230,000 and $300,000.
The company's 23 marketed floaters were 66% contracted during the third quarter, compared with 64% in the preceding quarter, while utilization of its five marketed ultra-harsh jack-ups increased to 86% from 80%.
Overall utilization across Noble's 28 marketed rigs rose to 70% from 67% in the second quarter.
"The third quarter, which featured a 5% sequential decrease in Adjusted EBITDA, marked the successful resumption of operations for both of our rigs in Brazil, but was also impacted by several other rigs across the fleet transitioning between contracts. On the commercial front, we have recently secured approximately $560 million in new contract awards, including a number of key programs that support a strengthening fleet utilization profile as we move through 2027," said Robert W. Eifler, President and Chief Executive Officer of Noble.
Noble expects a meaningful improvement in fleet utilization and cash flow beginning in the second half of 2027, with approximately 20% more fleet capacity already contracted for that period compared with the first half.
The company also finalized the sale of the Noble Resolve on October 9, receiving the remaining $45 million in proceeds, while the sale of the Noble Globetrotter II for $38 million is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026.
Noble reported third-quarter revenue of $729 million, compared with $720 million in the preceding quarter, while its net loss widened to $117 million from $37 million. Adjusted EBITDA declined to $201 million from $212 million.
