Libreville, 26 October. Borr Drilling's Prospector 5 jack-up drilling rig sank on the evening of 24 October off Mayumba in southern Gabon; of the 115 people on board, one died and four are missing, the company and Gabonese authorities said.
"Preliminary information indicates that the rig experienced a punch-through event during preload activities, resulting in loss of stability and the subsequent sinking of the rig," Borr Drilling said. A jack-up rig stands on legs lowered to the seabed; before drilling, the legs are loaded to check whether the ground will hold. Here one of the legs unexpectedly penetrated the seabed. The rig had not yet started drilling: it was being prepared for a campaign for Norway's BW Energy on the Dussafu Marin licence. An Indian national died; the missing include three Gabonese and one other foreign national.
Gabon's Ministry of Petroleum and Gas set up a crisis unit with the navy, state-owned Gabon Oil, BW Energy and Borr Drilling, reinforced the search and ordered a technical investigation. Production at the nearby MaBoMo facility has been halted; no oil leaks have been found, and pollution-response resources are on standby near Mayumba National Park.
What it means: The accident happened before drilling began, while the rig was being installed, and cost lives; the cause is for the technical investigation to establish.
Who benefits: Nobody. BW Energy and its partner Panoro Energy lose output while production is halted, and Borr Drilling loses the rig.
Background: Prospector 5 was built in 2014 and is rated for water depths of up to 120 metres; it had been working in Gabon since July. Legs punching through the seabed have toppled jack-ups before.
