Tender-Assist Rigs: Southeast Asia’s Quiet Workhorses Head for Full Utilisation

Tender-assist rigs are designed for fast, efficient platform drilling. Conventional units use a barge-like monohull and are best suited to shallow, calm waters, while larger semi-tenders can operate in deeper and more challenging environments such as offshore East Malaysia and the Andaman Sea.

The key attraction is speed. Compared with jackups, tender-assist rigs require less time to mobilise, rig up and move between locations. In some cases, drilling equipment can be installed in as few as three lifts, reducing non-productive time and improving well economics.

A Market Concentrated in Southeast Asia

According to Westwood's RigLogix, the global fleet comprises of just 29 tender-assist and semi tender-assist rigs (collectively referred to here as TARs). Of these, 16 are currently active, six are warm stacked, six are cold stacked and one remains under construction. Yet despite their modest numbers, the market is tightening rapidly, with Southeast Asia standing as the only region where the sector is truly thriving.

Not only are rigs actively drilling throughout the Asia Pacific region, but there has also been recent reactivation activity, new construction and visible demand for upcoming well programmes.

Outside this region, the picture is markedly different. Idle units are scattered across locations including China, Greece, Venezuela, Romania and Spain, with many having been inactive for years. In contrast, operators across Malaysia and Thailand continue to rely heavily on TARs to support development drilling campaigns on established offshore platforms.

A Market Dominated by Two Players

The Southeast Asian TAR market remains highly concentrated. The primary fleet owners are Vantris Energy, formerly part of Sapura Energy, and Energy Drilling, which together control most of the operational units available in the region.

Elsewhere, PetroVietnam Drilling manages a single semi-tender currently working for Shell Brunei on a long-term contract, while Keppel's Raiqa TAR remains under construction.

The limited availability of rigs means contracts are frequently awarded through direct negotiations or restricted tenders rather than fully competitive bidding rounds.

PTTEP Leads Demand

Thailand's national oil company PTTEP is currently the world's largest user of TARs. The company has eight tender-assist units and two semi-tenders under contract, with one of the latter operating in Myanmar.

PTTEP's extensive platform infrastructure in the Gulf of Thailand is ideally suited to these units. The region's shallow water depths and relatively calm sea conditions make TARs a natural fit, although recent tenders indicate the operator is increasingly willing to consider either TARs or jackups depending on programme requirements.

Further demand comes from Carigali-PTTEP Operating Company (CPOC), which currently has a semi-tender working in the Malaysia-Thailand Joint Development Area.

Malaysia remains another cornerstone of regional demand. PETRONAS Carigali currently has three TARs under contract, while operators including EnQuest, Vestigo, Shell, JX Nippon, ConocoPhillips and PTTEP Sabah continue to utilise these units across the country's offshore fields.

Historically, ExxonMobil was a major user of TARs in the Palas and Dulang fields before operatorship transferred to PETRONAS Carigali.

This broad operator base has helped support a consistently healthy domestic market and provided stability for fleet owners, even during broader offshore industry downturns.

A Tightening Market

Fleet utilisation has already reached approximately 96%, and the market appears poised to tighten further. Excluding the cold-stacked T-9 and the newbuild Raiqa, effective utilisation is expected to reach 100% before the end of the fourth quarter.

Looking ahead, 2027 promises to be particularly active for semi-tenders in Malaysia. Major drilling campaigns are scheduled to begin from March onwards, including Shell's Malikai Phase 3 programme, PTTEP's Kikeh Phase 3 development and ConocoPhillips' Kebabangan Cluster campaign.

Activity is also expected to expand beyond Malaysia. Offshore Vietnam, the Bien Dong project is anticipated to generate additional demand beginning in the first quarter of 2028.

Rates Rising Alongside Demand

Historically, TARs have commanded dayrates slightly below those of jackups, reflecting their specialist role and more limited geographic market. Over the past 12 months, however, that gap has narrowed as utilisation has tightened across Southeast Asia. Today, four TARs are securing rates above US$120,000 per day, underlining the strength of demand and the scarcity of available units.

Contract durations vary across the fleet, ranging from short-term campaigns to multi-year agreements. PTTEP remains a notable exception, typically favouring long-term contracts to support its substantial production commitments in the Gulf of Thailand.

For companies considering a newbuild TAR, historical benchmarks provide a useful starting point, although today's reality would likely involve longer delivery schedules and significantly higher construction costs. Historically, a unit could be built in around 24 months from order to delivery.

Whether a newbuild is commercially viable depends on balancing the cost of investment against the relatively small size of the global TAR market. However, with utilisation nearing full capacity, dayrates strengthening and limited newbuild activity in recent years, the sector appears increasingly exposed to a future supply shortage. Should demand continue to grow across Southeast Asia, contractors may find that fleet expansion becomes not only attractive but necessary to meet operator requirements.