The news took most people by surprise, but when the two largest drilling contractors in the world, Transocean and GlobalSantaFe, announced their plans to merge, it quickly became obvious that this deal makes a lot of sense. The planned merger will create a USD 53 billion company with a workforce of around 20,000 personnel and a 146-strong fleet. The combined fleet will include 68 jackups, 53 semis (including one newbuild) and 18 drillships, of which four are newbuilds. The newly created Transocean Inc. will have representation in every major geographical area, but will be especially strong in West Africa where the company will take nearly 50 percent of the market share.
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