Houston-based Pride International Inc. has dedicated the first of its four new deepwater drillships under construction by Samsung Heavy Industries in South Korea, the Deep Ocean Ascension. The company is expected to take delivery of the rig in late February 2010, followed by the mobilization of the rig to the US Gulf of Mexico where it is expected to begin operations in the third quarter under a five-year contract with BP.

In 2007, the company committed to expanding its presence in the deepwater sector. The Deep Ocean Ascension is the first in the four-rig construction program, and leads the company into the US Gulf of Mexico deepwater region.

In a shipyard ceremony, Louis A. Raspino, president and CEO of Pride commented, "The deepwater sector is expected to offer strong prospects and long-term demand visibility and this rig provides our clients with a complete package of high-specification attributes necessary to address the challenges inherent in deepwater well construction.”

Pride’s four-rig construction program is a cornerstone of its expansion strategy. The company expects the addition of each drillship to contribute to the company's expanding revenue base from floating assets, which accounted for 78% of total revenues in 2009 including 52% from the deepwater segment.

The next drillship scheduled to be delivered is the Deep Ocean Clarion, with an expected August 2010 completion date, followed by the Deep Ocean Mendocino in the first quarter of 2011, and the Deep Ocean Molokai in the fourth quarter of 2011.