Doha, Qatar: Qatar Petroleum (QP) has announced the signing of two contracts for the offshore drilling rigs, Al-Doha and Al-Zubarah, of Gulf Drilling International Ltd. (GDI) for use in QP’s offshore fields.

The contracts were signed by H.E. Dr. Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada, Minister of Energy and Industry and QP Chairman and Managing Director, and Mr. Ibrahim J. Al-Othman, Chief Executive Officer of GDI.

Each contract is for a five-year extension of both offshore rigs’ contracts, which will end in 2018. The two contracts’ combined value totals QAR 1.7 billion.

In his comments on the occasion, H.E. Dr. Mohammed Bin Saleh Al-Sada, Minister of Energy and Industry, hailed the visionary leadership of His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the Emir of the State of Qatar, and his continuous support of the oil and gas sector. Dr. Al-Sada said, “Qatar Petroleum places high priority on the development of national oil service companies, and is pleased to give its full support to GDI.” He praised GDI’s rapid development and said QP was appreciative of the high quality of service that it provides.

Ibrahim J. Al Othman, Chief Executive Officer of GDI, said, “GDI is fully aware of the value resulting from the support it receives from Qatar Petroleum. Working with QP has granted us the chance to develop our skills, technologies and the required competencies to be a world-class drilling service provider. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude and deep appreciation for the support and guidance of H.E. Dr. Mohammad Bin Saleh Al Sada, Minister of Energy and Industry, and I would also like to thank QP’s Operations Directorate for their continued support to GDI.”

About GDI:

Gulf Drilling International Ltd. (q.s.c.) is the first onshore and offshore oil and gas drilling company in Qatar and is a subsidiary of Gulf International Services (GIS), which is listed on the Qatar Exchange. GIS holds 70% of the shares of GDI, along with 100% of the shares of Gulf Helicopters, Amwaj Catering Services and Al-Koot Insurance Company.

GDI’s fleet currently consists of six offshore rigs, six onshore rigs, and one offshore accommodation jack-up and one lift boat operating in Qatar. GDI’s major clients are Qatar Petroleum, Occidental Petroleum of Qatar, RasGas, Qatar Shell, Dolphin Energy and Maersk Oil Qatar.