Around midnight of 23.09.2015 Korean time, the first ever build Hybrid drill floor was put to its ultimate test. After killing the main drilling bus, the biggest top drive ever installed on Transocean’s vessel was lifted up by the draw-works more than 50 feet using only stored energy. This happened for the first time in the world. The Hybrid drill floor technology showed what it is capable of.
Many vendors contributed to this challenging project. The heart of the system - the control for the hybrid functionality - was provided by Zekatex. The Hybrid Drill floor switchboard itself was built by our strategic partner Aspin Kemp and Associates. Last but not least, this would not have been possible without the Transocean’s electrical engineering management and their superior technical guidance during the whole process.
This test was a crucial proof of concept that clearly showed the advantages of this system. The hybrid technology is not only environmental friendly by utilizing megawatts of energy that were previously wasted, it also equalizes the load of the whole power plant thus reducing maintenance and increasing robustness. Deepwater Thalassa will be the first ship to claim using a technology that will become a standard in the future.