Ocean Oilfield has secured a drilling contract from Tende Energy to deploy the jackup rig Ocean MVM on the Abiod well program, located on the Maamoura license in the Gulf of Hammamet offshore Tunisia. The contract term, value, and start date were not disclosed by either party.
Under the agreement, Ocean Oilfield will work alongside Tende Energy to execute the drilling program on the Maamoura license. The Ocean MVM is a jackup drilling unit, suited to the relatively shallow waters of the Gulf of Hammamet, a semi-enclosed body of water on Tunisia's eastern coast that has historically hosted hydrocarbon exploration and production activity.
Tende Energy holds the Maamoura license and is driving the Abiod well program, which forms the basis of this drilling campaign. The Abiod formation is a known carbonate reservoir target in Tunisia, present across multiple license areas in the country's offshore and coastal zones. Beyond confirming the rig assignment and the operator-contractor relationship, no further technical or commercial details were made public at the time of announcement.
Tunisia's offshore sector has seen measured but continued interest from smaller independents and regional operators seeking to appraise and develop discovered resources. The country's licensing framework, administered through its national hydrocarbons authority, has attracted a mix of international and regional players, though activity levels have remained modest compared with neighbouring North African producers. The Maamoura license and Tende Energy's Abiod program represent part of this ongoing, if incremental, exploration and appraisal effort in Tunisian waters.
The deployment of the Ocean MVM on this program reflects the continued demand for jackup drilling capacity in the Mediterranean and North Africa region, where operators are progressing well programs on a campaign-by-campaign basis. With no financial terms disclosed, the commercial scope of the engagement remains unclear, but the contract represents a confirmed operational commitment between Ocean Oilfield and Tende Energy on a specific licensed area.