On Jan. 29, Pride International Inc. announced that it had received a five-year contract from BP PLC that will expand its deepwater drilling operations in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The contract is for Pride's advanced capability, ultra-deepwater drillship that is scheduled to be completed by the first quarter of 2010. The ship is currently in the early stages of construction at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea and is the first of three ultra-deepwater ships to be added to the Pride International fleet.