The work agreements have been concluded and the oilmen will in July be ready for a unique drilling operation in the Russian remote Arctic waters. A special 3 weeks on - 6 weeks off rotating scheme has been elaborated for the workers adjusted to the location of the field. According to Offshore.no, the workers will be brought to and from the rig by a boat from Murmansk, covering a distance of more than 2000 km.

The semi-submersible West Alpha is owned by Seadrill, the major offshore drilling company managed from Norway and controlled by business tycoon John Fredriksen. It was built in 1986 and has so far operated only in Norwegian waters. The drilling is considered highly controversial by many people, taking into account the harsh climate and complex ice conditions in the area. 

It is ExxonMobil which will be mainly responsible for the drilling operations. The company in 2011 struck a comprehensive Arctic cooperation agreement with Rosneft, according to which both companies will jointly map and develop three East Prinovozemelsky License Blocks in the Kara Sea, an area covering 126,000 square kilometers.

This year's drillhole will be made at the Akademichskoye, a prospective structure at the Prinovozemelsky-1 license block.

As previously reported, Rosneft has picked the Vostoc Yard for project design and concept development at the Prinovozemelsky projects. The Russian far eastern yard with experiences from the Sakhalin offshore projects, is expected to work closely together with Norwegian engineering major Kværner in the project.