Kulluk was an ice-strengthened that was used for oil exploration in the Arctic waters. She was constructed by in in 1983 and operated in the Canadian Arctic until 1993 when she was mothballed for over a decade. In 2005, she was purchased and extensively refurbished by Shell PLC for drilling off the .
[pdf] DTH technique was used in well drilling exclusively to dig, accurate, vertical bores, and rotary drilling was used to turn the hole. The Directional DTH system, patented by Atlas Copco, was first used.
[pdf] Combining Nabors proprietary Smart Suite of automated drilling software with Canrig® robotics on the PACE®-R801 creates an unmanned rig floor that removes crews from red zone areas and delivers consistent, predictable drilling performance. Video from the first well is available here, PACE®-R801.
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