Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has found a buyer for one of five drillships originally ordered but later cancelled due to a collapse in the oil markets.
The South Korean shipbuilder said it had sold the unit to an unnamed European company for $245m with delivery scheduled for the first quarter of 2023.
However, the buyer must confirm the delivery by October 2022.
The drillship was originally ordered by in 2014 by George Economou's Ocean Rig, which was later acquired by US drilling rig giant Transocean.
That contract and another for a sister drillship were canceled in October 2019, but SHI decided to finish their construction and try to sell them.
"With this sale, Samsung is expected to secure additional liquidity following the capital increase and reduce maintenance costs, thereby further enhancing its financial structure," the shipbuilder said.
"As the drilling market is recovering thanks to the recent rise in oil prices, we will do our best to sell the remaining three drillships as soon as possible," it added.
In June, SHI managed to secure a two-year bareboat charter for a cancelled drillship newbuilding in a deal with Italy's Saipem.
The Italian company has an option to purchase the drillship by the end of 2022 but has said that depends on market conditions.
SHI originally had an inventory of five drillship newbuildings that it was actively marketing, which analysts said accounted for about 12% of its order backlog.
