''GSF Development Driller II'' is a fifth generation,

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...

flagged Flagging may refer to: *Running out of time on a chess clock *Flagging (tape) Flagging is a coloured non-adhesive tape used in marking objects. It is commonly made of PVC or vinyl, though wood fibre cellulose-based biodegradable flagging also ex ...

dynamic positioning Dynamic positioning (DP) is a computer-controlled system to automatically maintain a vessel's position and heading by using its own propellers and thrusters. Position reference sensors, combined with wind sensors, motion sensors and gyrocompass ...

semi-submersible Semi-submersible may refer to a self-propelled vessel, such as: *Heavy-lift ship, which partially submerge to allow their cargo (another ship) to float into place for transport *Narco-submarine, some of which remained partially on the surface *Se ...

ultra-deepwater drilling rig owned and operated by

Transocean Transocean Ltd. is an American company. It is the world's largest offshore drilling contractor based on revenue and is based in Vernier, Switzerland. The company has offices in 20 countries, including Canada, the United States, Norway, United ...

. The vessel is capable of drilling in water depths up to with drilling depth of , upgradeable to . ''Development Driller II'' was deployed in drilling a relief well on the

Macondo Prospect The Macondo Prospect (Mississippi Canyon Block 252, abbreviated MC252) is an oil and gas prospect in the United States Exclusive Economic Zone of the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Louisiana. The prospect was the site of the ''Deepwater Horiz ...

to stop the

oil spill An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...

caused by the explosion and subsequent loss of ''

Deepwater Horizon ''Deepwater Horizon'' was an ultra-deepwater, dynamically positioned, semi-submersible offshore drilling rig owned by Transocean and operated by BP. On 20 April 2010, while drilling at the Macondo Prospect, a blowout caused an explosion on ...

''.

References

External links

Transocean official website

at ''VesselTracker'' {{Deepwater 2004 ships Drilling rigs Semi-submersibles Ships built in Singapore Transocean