Saudi Arabian joint venture shipyard International Maritime Industries (IMI) has secured an order from ARO Drilling to build Saudi Arabia’s first jack-up drilling rig.
The S116E jackup, named Kingdom 3, will be the first jackup to be built entirely in Saudi Arabia, and IMI stated that the commencement of work on the platform is a major milestone for the country and an important step towards IMI’s full operation.
Located in Ras Al-Khair, IMI covers an area of 12 million square meters and is equipped with facilities such as three large docks, four Goliath cranes and seven piers, making it the largest shipyard in the Middle East and North Africa region.
In 2017, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, the shipbuilding subsidiary of HD Hyundai Group, Saudi Aramco, Bahri, and Lamprell of the UAE announced the establishment of IMI as a joint venture and hold 20%, 40%, 20%, and 20% of the shares of the shipyard, respectively.
IMI originally was scheduled to begin production at the end of 2020 and go into full production in 2022, but due to factors such as the new crown epidemic, it has been delayed to the point where full production has not yet begun.
“Kingdom 3” is the third S116E platform built by IMI for ARO Drilling. The first, “Kingdom 1”, was delivered in November 2023 and was built by IMI in partnership with Lamprell in Hamriyah, UAE.
The IMI is not yet in full production and is already rumored to have a number of large orders.
At the time of the Kingdom 1’s delivery, ARO Drilling CEO Mohamed Hegazi said that 20 Kingdom series platforms would be built at the IMI, making ARO Drilling a top-tier drilling contractor for decades to come.
In addition, IMI revealed during Posidonia 2024 in Greece that one of the yard’s shareholders, the Saudi Arabian National Shipping Company (Bahri), has committed to ordering billions of dollars worth of VLCCs from it. Bahri will place an order with IMI to build about 20 VLCCs based on a framework agreement, sources said.
It is understood that when fully operational, IMI will be able to build up to six jack-up rigs, 25 offshore support vessels and 18 large merchant vessels per year. In addition, IMI will be able to provide repair services for up to 250 vessels per year.