The heavy-duty wide beam drillship has the capacity to accommodate a 20,000psi blowout preventer system and is capable of operating at 3658m water depth while drilling to 12192m below rotary table.
An innovative hull form design will enable the vessel to make better use of its dynamic positioning system along with enhanced thruster interaction and improved motion performance in maximum roll angle.
"This is an important milestone toward meeting the applicable classification requirements for validating the structural integrity of HHI's latest generation of drillships," HHI senior vice president initial design team Yun-Sik Lee said.
"Through the award of AIP, the design of HD12000 has been developed and verified with improved versatility and strength, increased deck space, benign motion characteristics and a reduced maintenance profile."
