Rockhopper secures stake in FPSO bound for Falklands waters

Rockhopper Exploration is putting $44m into the Sea Lion development off the Falkland Islands, committing to a 35% stake in the OSX-1 FPSO as political pressure from Argentina and contractor ...

Menu Americas Europe Offshore Rockhopper secures stake in FPSO bound for Falklands waters Bojan Lepic October 8, 2026 1 6,801 2 minutes read MarineTraffic / Jose Martinez Rodeiro MarineTraffic / Jose Martinez Rodeiro Rockhopper Exploration is putting $44m into the Sea Lion development off the Falkland Islands, committing to a 35% stake in the OSX-1 FPSO as political pressure from Argentina and contractor withdrawals continue to hang over the project.

The vessel will become Sea Lion’s second FPSO.

The first, Aoka Mizu, has already been selected for the sanctioned Northern Development Area Phase 1, where first oil is targeted for the first quarter of 2028.

OSX-1 is intended for the separate Central Development Area, creating a second production hub as the project expands.

Rockhopper has entered into a subscription agreement for shares in a newly incorporated special purpose vehicle that owns OSX-1 as its sole asset.

The FPSO’s estimated acquisition cost is around $125m.

The company expects its share of annual holding costs to be around $1.4m.

Sea Lion operator Navitas Petroleum exercised an option to acquire OSX-1 in August as part of plans to accelerate development of the Central Development Area.

Navitas initially funded the acquisition before Rockhopper subscribed for its 35% participating interest.

The additional FPSO is expected to provide around 125,000 barrels per day of production capacity, equivalent to about 43,750 bpd net to Rockhopper.

The Central Development Area is currently expected to comprise 20 wells in its first phase, followed by another 18 wells.

A development plan is targeted for submission to the Falkland Islands Government in 2027, with a final investment decision expected in the first half of 2028 and first production by the end of 2030.

Rockhopper raised around $180m through a share placing in August, with about $100m earmarked for its Central Development Area funding requirements through mid-2028, including the OSX-1 investment.