OPINION | As 2025 challenges fade, offshore rig outlook brightens

As of early December 2025, award activity for offshore rigs is sitting at around 295.9 years, which is a six per cent decrease versus the full year figure for 2024. Jackup awards are up 7.3 per cent but semisub awards are down 6.9 per cent, while drillships are down a whopping 44.2 per cent – though this may be remedied somewhat in December if Petrobras awards some highly anticipated drillship contracts.

However, Westwood still anticipates awarded days for 2025 will finish in line or slightly higher than last year due to several evergreen contracts in markets such as Mainland China and India, where extensions are typically firmed up at year-end.

Global marketed supply of jackups, drillships and semisubs stands at around 439, 89 and 73 units, which is down by five, seven and two units, respectively, when compared to the end of 2024. Due to the noticeable slowdown in demand since peaks in 2022 and 2023, an uptick in rig attrition has been recorded.

For 2025 so far, 22 units have been retired from the fleet consisting of eight drillships, eight jackups and six semisubs – the most recorded since 2021.

What’s to come in 2026?

Traditionally, and as is the case for 2025, when the rig market is experiencing lower utilisation, attrition and cold stacking rises while deliveries from shipyards tend to decline.

Of the 172 idle units tracked by Westwood’s RigLogix, 28 units have future commitments – 14 jackups, six semisubs and eight drillships. Currently, 50 jackups, eight semisubs and six drillships have been stacked for five years or more, making it extremely challenging to re-enter the market, if at all.