Houlder Drilling Co. has placed a $37-million order for the construction of a self-elevating offshore drilling unit with UIE Shipyard, Clydebank, Scotland. The rig will be used in the development of the Morecambe Bay gas field off the Lancashire coast, England. The yard is currently building a similar unit for British Gas Corp. for the same site.
In midsummer, British Gas awarded a $100-million contract to develop the offshore field to Houlder — part of the C.Y. Tung controlled Furness Withy group. The two jackups will be equipped with a slant drilling package to bring the site on-stream in 1984. The first jackup will be delivered by next summer, and the other by the end of 1982.
Hydranautics Hydraulic Systems, Goleta, Calif., received a contract from Marathon LeTourneau Offshore Co., Houston, Texas, to supply two 70-metric-ton-capacity "Gripper Jack" assemblies and a combination power supply and control console for the units. Marathon acted as buying agent for its licensee, UIE Shipyard.