Valaris's pending merger with Transocean has received all required regulatory approvals and is expected to close on or about December 1, 2026, President and CEO Anton Dibowitz said in the company's third quarter results.
Transocean President and CEO Keelan I. Adamson said on November 3 that the most recent approvals came from the US Department of Justice and CADE, Brazil's competition authority. Neither imposed conditions.
Shareholder votes at both companies are scheduled for November 24, and Transocean expects Bermuda court approval on November 26.
Transocean agreed in February to acquire Valaris in an all-stock transaction valued at US$5.8 billion at announcement. Valaris shareholders will receive 15.235 Transocean shares for each Valaris share.
Valaris has added approximately US$600 million of backlog since its August 5 fleet status report. This brought its total to approximately US$4.8 billion on November 2, up from US$4.6 billion in August.
The new work includes a two-well exploration contract for drillship Valaris DS-18 with Petronas off Suriname, lasting up to seven months from the fourth quarter of 2026. A three-year BP contract for platform drilling services on Mad Dog and Thunder Horse in the US Gulf of Mexico, starting in January 2027, adds approximately US$290 million.
Saudi Aramco also extended five ARO Drilling-owned rigs for three years.
Valaris sold the semi-submersible Valaris MS-1 for recycling. It also terminated a planned recycling sale of the long-term stacked jackup Valaris 111 and instead sold the rig to another buyer to be converted into a mobile offshore production unit.
"Fleet utilisation is increasing, and all ten of our active drillships are now on contract," Dibowitz said.
Four drillships returned to work this year after significant idle periods. Valaris DS-11, DS-13 and DS-14 remain stacked in Spain.
Q3 operating revenues rose to US$594 million from US$539 million in the second quarter, while net income held at US$47 million.
At announcement, the companies projected a combined fleet of 73 rigs, including 33 ultra-deepwater drillships.