# Saipem wins approximately $260 million Santorini drilling contract offshore Côte d'Ivoire

> The Eni award includes a firm development programme and additional optional periods, with operations expected in early 2027.

- Topic: Contract award
- Event date: 2026-07-22
- First published on EPC Feed: 2026-10-28T15:45:20.416Z
- Updated: 2026-10-28T15:45:20.416Z
- Companies: Saipem
- Countries: Côte d’Ivoire
- Page: https://epcfeed.com/news/saipem-santorini-eni-ivory-coast-drilling-260-million


Saipem secured an offshore drilling contract from Eni Côte d'Ivoire Limited worth approximately $260 million, the company announced on 22 July 2026. The award assigns the Santorini drillship to a long-term development drilling campaign offshore Côte d'Ivoire. Operations were scheduled to begin in early 2027 according to the release. That start expectation is part of the announcement's forward-looking schedule and is distinct from the date when the contract award was disclosed.

The contract includes a firm commitment for an extended drilling programme as well as additional optional periods. Saipem also identifies the possibility of deploying the rig in neighbouring countries. The distinction matters for contract tracking: a possibility of geographic deployment or an optional extension should not be counted as a separately confirmed campaign in another country. The firm assignment identified by the announcement is offshore Côte d'Ivoire for the named Eni subsidiary.

Saipem describes the award as improving visibility over the drillship's future use and supporting continuity of activity. For offshore contractors, keeping a specialised asset contracted across a defined programme is a different commercial event from constructing a new production installation. The release is about drilling services using Santorini, rather than an engineering and construction package for the full field development or an announcement that the development has begun commercial production.

The company also classifies the contract as a related-party transaction because the customer is controlled by Eni. It states that the transaction is ordinary and conducted on market-equivalent or standard terms, placing it within the relevant exclusion under its related-party transaction rules. This disclosure is part of the award's corporate context. It does not change the stated identity of the customer, the deployment country or the distinction between firm work and options.

The announcement provides a contract value, a designated rig, a development-drilling purpose and an expected commencement period. It does not publish a well-by-well programme or a breakdown of the value between the firm period and options. Retaining the disclosed scope avoids converting a fleet-utilisation award into a more detailed development plan than the company actually released. Later operator updates would be needed to establish mobilisation, individual well outcomes or any exercise of the additional contractual periods described in the July announcement.

## Sources

1. [Saipem: new offshore drilling contract worth approximately 260 million USD](https://www.saipem.com/en/media/press-releases/2026-07-22/saipem-new-offshore-drilling-contract-worth-approximately-260). Company release, Saipem, Published 2026-07-22, Read 2026-10-28.