Rendering of the Noble Lloyd Noble.Noble Corp.’s newbuild jackup rig, the Noble Lloyd Noble, was damaged in a crane accident on Feb. 28, the London-based company said Tuesday.
The rig is in the late stages of construction at Sembcorp Marine Jurong in Singapore. A Sembcorp Marine spokesman said that a shore crane was lifting a bundle of scaffold planks from the Noble Lloyd Noble to the quayside when the boom of the shore crane came into contact with a crane on the rig.
Noble Corp. said that the damage appears to be confined to one area of the rig, including one of its cranes. A thorough damage assessment must be completed before the company can determine how the incident will affect construction completion and delivery.
Construction on the Noble Lloyd Noble was expected to be completed during the second quarter. Following mobilization of the rig to the North Sea, the rig was due to commence a four-year primary term contract with Statoil during the third quarter, with the contract stipulating a commencement date of no later than March 1, 2017.
Sembcorp said Wednesday that it was working with Noble to assess the damage, but that it appeared to be minimal enough not to affect the rig's scheduled delivery later this year.
The Singapore Ministry of Manpower is investigating the cause of the incident — in which several shipyard workers sustained minor injuries — and access to the rig is limited during the initial phase of the investigation. Sembcorp said it was cooperating with the government investigation.
