Helmerich & Payne Joint Venture Secures Major Caspian Sea Contract

Turan Drilling and Engineering awarded 5-year offshore operations and maintenance deal with bp in Azerbaijan

Published on Feb. 24, 2026

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Turan Drilling and Engineering Company LLC (TURAN), a joint venture between Helmerich & Payne (H&P) and bp, has been awarded a long-term offshore operations and maintenance contract renewal by bp in the Caspian Sea, offshore Azerbaijan. The contract has a firm duration of 5 years, with 3 one-year extension options, and could exceed $1 billion in value if all options are exercised.

Why it matters

This contract renewal solidifies H&P's long-standing partnership with bp in the Caspian region, where the company has operated since the mid-1990s. The offshore operations provide H&P with predictable, long-term revenue and enhance the stability of the company's overall earnings through market cycles.

The details

Under the agreement, TURAN will provide operations and maintenance services for 8 offshore platforms, including personnel, maintenance execution, spare parts, warehousing, and the deployment of a new asset integrity and fabric maintenance engineering team. The contract builds on TURAN's decades of safe and reliable offshore service delivery in the Caspian.

  • The contract renewal is effective starting in March 2026.

The players

Turan Drilling and Engineering Company LLC (TURAN)

A joint venture between Helmerich & Payne (H&P) and bp that will provide the offshore operations and maintenance services.

Helmerich & Payne (H&P)

An American oil and gas services company that has operated in Azerbaijan since the mid-1990s and is the parent company of the TURAN joint venture.

bp

The British multinational oil and gas company that has awarded the long-term offshore operations and maintenance contract to the TURAN joint venture.

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What they’re saying

“This contract renewal reflects the strength of our long-standing partnership with bp and the consistent performance our teams have delivered in the Caspian region over multiple decades.”

— Trey Adams, President, Helmerich & Payne (BusinessWire)

“This new long-term drilling operations contract marks a renewed chapter in our longstanding Azerbaijan partnership. It establishes the foundation for a wells delivery alliance, which will be built on deeper collaboration, early engagement, shared performance objectives and a unified approach to delivering the production goals that the country requires.”

— Ole Maier, Senior Vice President, Offshore, bp (BusinessWire)

What’s next

The contract has a firm duration of 5 years, with 3 one-year extension options that could extend the deal to 8 years total if exercised.

The takeaway

This contract renewal solidifies Helmerich & Payne's position as a key partner for bp's offshore operations in the Caspian Sea, providing long-term, predictable revenue and enhancing the stability of the company's overall earnings through market cycles.