OSLO (Reuters) ? Bermuda-based oilfield services firm Seadrill has agreed to sell its West Prospero rig to shipowner Ship Finance International for $210 million and to lease it back for 15 years.

?Seadrill has under the arrangement several options to repurchase the unit during the charter period,? Seadrill Ltd. said in a statement.

?Seadrill will not record any gain from the sale of West Prospero in the accounts as the jack-up (rig) will continue to be reported as a newbuild asset in the company?s balance sheet,? the company said.

Chief operating officer and chief financial officer Alf Thorkildsen said the aim of the sell/lease-back deal ? the second with Ship Finance in the last six months ? is to free up capital and boost scope for financial leverage.

Asked about the impact of the transaction on Seadrill?s dividend, Thorkildsen said: ?In the short-term picture we are focusing on our new-build programme.?

In its third-quarter presentation, Seadrill said its building programme consisted of 10 rigs and two deepwater drillships on order at shipyards.

The aggregate lease payment for the first three years totals about $120 million. For the subsequent four years the aggregated lease payment totals around $77 million, and for the remaining eight years of the lease period the agreed aggregated lease payment is $109 million.