BP PLC signed a contract for Ensco PLC’s DS-6 ultradeepwater drillship for 5 years at $522,000/day, plus cost adjustments.

Niko Resources Ltd., Calgary, is starting a multibasin exploratory drilling campaign in Indonesia as the company gained participation in its 21^st block in Indonesia.

US oil and gas drilling activity this week increased by 11 units to 1,979 total rigs working. The rig count for the week ended Mar. 30 was up by 203 rigs from the comparable period a year ago, Baker Hughes Inc. reported.

The US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement approved Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc.’s oil spill response plan (OSRP) for the Beaufort Sea on Mar. 28. The company still must obtain well-specific drilling permits before commencing operations, the US Department of the Interior agency noted.

Ram Power Corp., Reno, Nev., has signed a letter of intent with SNC-Lavalin Constructors Inc. for the construction of a 26 Mw geothermal power plant at Geysers steam field in northern California.

The Powder River Basin Resource Council (PRBRC) and other groups asked Wyoming’s Seventh District Court to require the Wyoming Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (WOGCC) in Casper to disclose more information about chemicals used during hydraulic fracturing.

US oil and gas drilling activity this week declined by 16 units to 1,968 total rigs working. The rig count for the week ended Mar. 23 was up by 230 rigs from the comparable period a year ago, Baker Hughes Inc. reported.

African Petroleum Corp. Ltd., Perth, has secured the Ocean Rig UDW Eirik Raude deepwater fifth generation semisubmersible to start a two-well drilling program off West African in the third or fourth quarter of 2012.

Brazilian federal prosecutors filed criminal indictments against Chevron Corp., drilling contractor Transocean Ltd., and a total of 17 executives from both companies citing “crimes against the environment” regarding a seep last year from Frade oil field offshore Brazil.

The UK government has offered oil and gas operators a measure of certainty about the ability to recover costs of decommissioning production platforms and related offshore facilities.

US oil and gas drilling activity this week increased by 11 units to 1,984 total rigs working. The rig count for the week ended Mar. 16 was up by 264 rigs from the comparable period a year ago, Baker Hughes Inc. reported.

US oil and gas drilling activity this week decreased by 16 units to 1,973 total rigs working. The rig count for the week ended Mar. 9 was up by 258 rigs from the comparable period a year ago, Baker Hughes Inc. reported.

US oil and gas drilling activity this week increased by 8 units to 1,989 total rigs working. The rig count for the week ended Mar. 2 was up by 282 rigs from the comparable period a year ago, Baker Hughes Inc. reported.

The Marine Spill Response Corp. (MSRC) said it completed the Gulf of Mexico expansion program known as Deep Blue to respond to an oil spill incident, if necessary, and MRSC has arranged contracts with Edison Chouest Offshore and Hornbeck Offshore Serivces to modify additional equipment.