Nigeria, Nov. 6 -- French energy giant TotalEnergies has deployed an ultra-deepwater drillship to Nigeria's Akpo oil and gas field, preparing to commence a new drilling campaign that could expand activity in one of the country's major offshore petroleum assets.

The company announced on Thursday that the drillship, Noble Black Rhino, had arrived at the Akpo field ahead of the campaign, with drilling of a well designated AFE-1X scheduled to begin on 13 November.

According to a statement published on its Facebook page, the vessel crossed into Nigerian waters on 2 November after completing a 738-nautical-mile journey from Cote d'Ivoire. It arrived at the field at 6 a.m. on 3 November.

TotalEnergies said preparations were underway to achiev...