One worker has died and four others remain missing after Borr Drilling’s Prospector 5 rig sank off the coast of Mayumba, Gabon, late on Saturday, with 115 people on board, officials and the company said on Sunday.
The body of one of the five people initially reported missing, an Indian national, has been recovered, according to Sylvain Mayabi Binet, Secretary-General of the National Organisation of Petroleum Employees. The four others still unaccounted for comprise three Gabonese nationals and one expatriate.
Borr Drilling said preliminary findings indicated that the rig suffered a “punch-through event” during preload activities, causing it to lose stability before sinking.
The incident occurred at about 9.40pm local time on Saturday in the Dussafu Marin permit area, near the Mabomont production facility, Gabon’s Ministry of Petroleum and Gas said.
The Prospector 5, owned and operated by Borr Drilling, had been contracted to support BW Energy’s drilling operations offshore Gabon but had not yet begun drilling.
The rig was operating within the Dussafu Marin permit, where BW Energy holds a 73.5 per cent working interest and Panoro Energy owns the remaining 17.5 per cent.
Gabon’s Ministry of Petroleum and Gas has activated a crisis unit and ordered the navy to strengthen search and rescue operations.
It has also launched a technical investigation into the cause of the accident, Petroleum and Gas Minister Clotaire Kondja said.
The crisis unit comprises representatives from the ministry, the navy, state-owned Gabon Oil, BW Energy and Borr Drilling, Kondja added.
Borr Drilling chief executive Bruno Morand expressed concern for those still missing and the people affected by the disaster.
“We are deeply concerned for those who remain unaccounted for and everyone affected by this incident,” Morand said. “Our immediate priority is supporting the ongoing search and rescue efforts and the welfare of all personnel involved.”
Panoro Energy said production had been halted following the incident, although there had been no reports of damage or accidental discharges.
The ministry also confirmed that no harmful substances had been detected in the surrounding waters.
Pollution-response resources remain deployed to protect the coastline and nearby Mayumba National Park as search and rescue operations continue.
