Transocean, the largest offshore drilling contractor in the Gulf of Mexico, told shareholders last week that it’s keeping all of its employees on the payroll pending the lifting of a deepwater drilling moratorium.
Those who oppose the moratorium — Gulf Coast politicians, for example — have cited the loss of jobs in arguing against the six-month ban.
But Transocean, as well as the second-biggest drilling contractor, Noble, have said they are focused on “maintaining crews” so they can get back to work as soon as possible, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
Transocean and others are also focusing on upgrading rigs to bring them up to new safety standards, especially when it comes to blowout preventers. Transocean said it’s spent $25 million on upgrading its fleet of rigs.
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