GLOBAL consultancy firm Stapleton International has secured a multi-million pound deal to provide project services for the building of a new drilling rig.

The Darlington company said the contract with GlobalSantaFe, based in Houston, Texas, will help in its bid to more than double turnover in its commercial and project division to about £11m over the next three years.

It is hoped that Stapleton's work on the £340m ultra- deepwater rig, named the GSF Development Driller III, will lead to additional work with GlobalSantaFe, the world's largest international drilling contractor.

Marketing director Mark Stewart said colleagues from Stapleton's Darlington headquarters, in Stanhope Road South, and its Houston office will be working on the project in Corpus Christi, Texas, and in Singapore.

"It is worth about £3m to £4m to Stapleton and could potentially lead to other contracts worth in excess of £5m with the client in the future," he said.

Stapleton, which provides a full range of commercial, contractual and scheduling services to international contractors and owners in the oil and gas, construction, engineering and energy sectors, has a group turnover of about £15m.

The property development arm of the business, Stapleton Investments, which is building a £3.6m complex of luxury flats in Coniscliffe Road, Darlington, has a turnover of £11m. Its commercial and contracts consultancy division is expected to see turnover climb from almost £5m to up to £11m in the next three years.

Established more than 30 years ago, Stapleton has offices in London, Kuwait, Singapore, Malaysia, Houston and Dubai.

Earlier this month, it opened a new office in Hong Kong, headed by John Harvey, and Stapleton appointed Stephen Rae as an executive director to oversee the Far East region.

"These appointments underscore our commitment to the success of our customers in the Asia Pacific and South Asia regions," said Mr Stewart.

"The Singapore office will provide increased and direct access to customers, localised support, and professional services and training.

"With a growing client base and existing long-term workload, the opportunities in the Far East are endless and a major part of Stapleton's future strategy."

Stapleton, which employs 30 people in Darlington and a further 20 globally, recently signed a lucrative deal to work on the 2006 Asian Games village.

It will provide project, commercial and cost management services for the development of the village, in Doha, in the Gulf state of Qatar