Hai Yang Shi You - 981 at Li-Wan 3-1 field

China's first locally-built deepsea drilling rig has returned to work in a South China Sea gas field after almost two months of repairs, according to state-owned rig owner CNOOC.

The $1 billion rig Hai Yang Shi You (or Offshore Oil) 981 was being chartered by Canada's Husky Energy, which operates the Liwan project in the western part of South China Sea, a major offshore gas discovery, industry officials said.

"Leaks have been repaired and maintenance works finished. Offshore Oil 981 has returned to works at Liwan 3-1 gas field,"

[May 9 2012]
CNOOC has spudded its debut deep-water well.  Hai Yang Shi You - 981 or Marine Oil 981 has  been recently been moved into place 320 kilometers (or 198 miles) southeast of Hong Kong, at the northern end of the South China Sea and within the country's Exclusive Economic Zone. Operations at the rig are slated to begin 

"For to be strengthened to safeguard the state sovereignty, the maritime law enforcement. Safe operation of the hole must be ensured as well. Following the conventions of maritime safety laws, a water of 500 meters will be marked out around the hole. A trip of foreign vessels, including fishing boats, are prohibited in this water. "


[April 19]China National Offshore Oil Corp, the country's biggest marine oil producer, signed a production-sharing contract on April 18 with Eni China BV for a deepwater block in the South China Sea.
Italy-based Eni will operate the 30/27 block, which has a total area of 5,130 square kilometers and lies 400 kilometers off the coast of Hong Kong.
Eni will conduct three-dimension seismic surveys and drill one exploration well in the block and cover all expenditures during the exploration period.
CNOOC will have up to a 51 percent interest in any commercial discoveries in the block.Since China's near-shore area offers very limited potential for further oil and gas exploration, it's imperative for the company to go to deepwater projects.
CNOOC is testing its first domestic semi-submersible drilling rig, the Haiyang Shiyou 981, which is capable of operating at a maximum water depth of 3,000 meters, as part of its ambitions to achieve deepwater output of 50 million tons of oil equivalent by 2020. more