Kuwait will soon issue tenders for the supply of 27 oil drilling rigs at an estimated cost of nearly 800 million Kuwaiti dinars ($2.6 billion), a newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The state-owned Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) has requested the towers as part of its plans to boost crude output to more than 3.5 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2040, the Kuwaiti Arabic language daily Alqabas said.

It quoted “informed” sources as saying the tenders are expected to be issued within the next two weeks and contracts would be awarded in March.

The report said contractors are allowed to bid for a maximum eight rigs each and the equipment must be supplied within five years, with an additional one-year grace period provided there is no change in prices.

According to the paper, the new units would boost KOC’s drilling rigs to more than 180.

(Writing by Nadim Kawach; Editing by Anoop Menon)

(anoop.menon@lseg.com)

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