A Behind-the-Scenes Firm Is Caught in the Spotlight.

[elleng]

Throughout its history, Transocean has been known for pushing the envelope. The company, the leading player in offshore oil drilling, proudly breaks records for drilling the deepest wells, while finding ways to keep oil and gas flowing under the most extreme pressures and temperatures. On the financial side, Transocean has pursued aggressive tax strategies and bought up competitors. . .

Transocean, which employs more than 18,000 people, operates a fleet of 139 offshore rigs and drill vessels in 30 countries. It owns nearly half of the 50 or so deepwater platforms in the world.

A predecessor company was the first to deploy jack-up drilling rigs that could stand on the ocean floor. Transocean was the first company to drill year-round in the frigid North Sea, and it was the first to run a drill ship capable of working in 10,000 feet of water. In September, the company claimed the record for the deepest offshore well after it finished one for BP in the Gulf of Mexico that was 35,050 feet in vertical depth.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/business/energy-environment/25transocean.html?hp