Seadrill Ltd

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

☐ REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR (g) OF THE

OR

☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023

OR

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES

EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

OR

☐ SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE

Date of event requiring this shell company report

For the transition period from __ to __

Commission file number:001-39327

SEADRILL LIMITED

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

Bermuda

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

11025 Equity Dr., Ste. 150, Houston, Texas 77041 United States of America

(Address of principal executive offices)

Todd StricklerSenior Vice President and General Counsel11025 Equity Dr., Ste. 150, Houston, Texas 77041 United States of AmericaTel: +1 (713) 329 1150Email: legal@seadrill.com

(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act: None

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report:

As at December 31, 2023, there were 73,705,343 common shares, par value $0.01 per share, outstanding.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See definition of "large accelerated filer," "accelerated filer," and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards † provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐† The term "new or revised financial accounting standard" refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its AccountingStandards Codification after April 5, 2012.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the

registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements.☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based

compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b).

☐

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:

☒ U.S. GAAP

☐ International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board

☐ Other

If "Other" has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark whichfinancial statement item the registrant has elected to follow.

☐ Item 17

☐ Item 18

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed all documents and reports required to be filed by Sections 12, 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 subsequent to the distribution of securities under a plan confirmed by a court.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

The statements included in this annual report regarding future financial performance and results of operations and other statements that are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the United States ("U.S.") Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). Forward-looking statements in this annual report include, but are not limited to, statements about the following subjects:

•the effect of any disputes and actions with respect to production levels by, among or between major oil and gas producing countries and any expectations we may have with respect thereto;

•our results of operations, our cash flow from operations, our revenue efficiency and other performance indicators and optimization of rig-based spending;

•the offshore drilling market, including the effects of variations in commodity prices, supply and demand, utilization rates, dayrates, customer drilling programs, stacking and reactivation of rigs, effects of new rigs on the market, the impact of the changes to regulations in jurisdictions in which we operate and changes in the global economy or market outlook for our industry, our rig classes or various geographies in which we operate;

•customer drilling contracts, including contract backlog, force majeure provisions, contract awards, commencements, extensions, cancellations, terminations, renegotiation, contract option exercises, contract revenues, early termination fees, indemnity provisions and rig mobilizations;

•the addition of renewable or other energy alternatives to meet local, regional or global demand for energy, the commitment, by us or our customers, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions or operating intensity thereof;

•liquidity, including availability under our credit facilities, and adequacy of cash flows for our debt obligations;

•debt levels, including interest rates, credit ratings and our evaluation or decisions with respect to any potential liability management transactions or strategic alternatives intended to prudently manage our liquidity, debt maturities and other aspects of our capital structure and any litigation, alleged defaults and discussions with creditors related thereto;

•upgrade, shipyard, reactivations, newbuild and other capital projects, including the level of expected capital expenditures and the timing and cost of completing capital projects delivery and operating commencement dates, relinquishment or abandonment, expected downtime and lost revenues;

•the cost, timing and benefits, including synergies, of acquisitions, including the acquisition of Aquadrill LLC, reactivations and the proceeds and timing of dispositions;

•tax matters, including our effective tax rate, uncertain tax positions, changes in tax laws, treaties and regulations, tax assessments, tax incentive programs and liabilities for tax issues in the tax jurisdictions in which we operate or have a taxable presence;

•legal and regulatory matters, including results and effects of current or potential legal proceedings, and governmental audits and assessments, outcomes and effects of internal and governmental investigations, customs and environmental matters;

•insurance matters, risk tolerance and risk response, including adequacy of insurance, renewal of insurance and insurance proceeds;

•effects of accounting changes and adoption of accounting policies;

•investment in recruitment, retention and personnel development initiatives, the timing of, and other matters concerning, severance payments and benefit payments and maintaining agreements with labor unions;

•the impact of the closing of our London, England office and consolidation of our corporate offices in Houston, Texas;

•our capital allocation framework goal of returning at least 50% of the Free Cash Flow to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases, including our ability to meet such goal and the timing of such dividends and share repurchases, if any; and

•the Company’s outlook and guidance, plans, strategies and business prospects.

These statements may include words such as "assumes", "projects", "forecasts", "estimates", "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "intends", "may", "might", "will", "would", "can", "could", "should" or, in each case, their negative, or other variations or comparable terminology in connection with any discussion of the timing or nature of future operating or financial performance or other events. These statements are based on management’s current plans, expectations, assumptions and beliefs concerning future events impacting the Company and therefore involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements.

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: those described under Item 3D, "Risk Factors" in this annual report, offshore drilling market conditions including supply and demand, day rates, customer drilling programs and effects of new or reactivated rigs on the market, contract awards and rig mobilizations, contract backlog, dry-docking and other costs of maintenance, special periodic surveys, upgrades and regulatory work for the drilling rigs in the Company’s fleet, the cost and timing of shipyard and other capital projects, the performance of the drilling rigs in the Company’s fleet, delay in payment or disputes with customers, Seadrill’s ability to successfully employ its drilling units, procure or have access to financing, ability to comply with loan covenants, fluctuations in the international price of oil, international financial market conditions, inflation, changes in governmental regulations that affect the Company or the operations of the Company’s fleet, increased competition in the offshore drilling industry, the review of competition authorities, the impact of global economic conditions and global health threats, pandemics and epidemics, our ability to maintain relationships with suppliers, customers, employees and other third parties, our ability to maintain adequate financing to support our business plans, our ability to successfully complete and realize the intended benefits of any mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, and the impact of other strategic transactions, our liquidity and the adequacy of cash flows to satisfy our obligations, future activity under and in respect of the Company’s share repurchase program, our ability to satisfy (or timely cure any noncompliance with) the continued listing requirements of the NYSE and the OSE, or other exchanges where our shares may be listed, the cancellation of drilling contracts currently included in reported contract backlog, losses on impairment of long-lived fixed assets, shipyard, construction and other delays, the results of meetings of our shareholders, political and other uncertainties, including those related to the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, and any related sanctions, the effect and results of litigation, regulatory matters, settlements, audits, assessments and contingencies, including any litigation related to acquisitions or dispositions, our ability to successfully integrate with Aquadrill following the Merger, the concentration of our revenues in certain geographical jurisdictions, limitations on insurance coverage, our ability to attract and retain skilled personnel on commercially reasonable terms, the level of expected capital expenditures, our expected financing of such capital expenditures and the timing and cost of completion of capital projects, fluctuations in interest rates or exchange rates and currency devaluations relating to foreign or U.S. monetary policy, tax matters, changes in tax laws, treaties and regulations, tax assessments and liabilities for tax issues, legal and regulatory matters in the jurisdictions in which we operate, customs and environmental matters, the potential impacts on our business resulting from decarbonization and emissions legislation and regulations, the impact on our business from climate-change generally, the occurrence of cybersecurity incidents, attacks or other breaches to our information technology systems, including our rig operating systems, and other important factors described from time to time in the reports filed or furnished by us with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which are available free of charge on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.

The foregoing risks and uncertainties are beyond our ability to control, and in many cases, we cannot predict the risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those indicated. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or to persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by reference to these risks and uncertainties. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Each forward looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement. We expressly disclaim any obligations or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement to reflect any change in our expectations or beliefs with regard to the statement or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any forward-looking statement is based, except as required by law. Forward-looking and other statements in this annual report regarding our environmental, social and other sustainability plans and goals are not an indication that these statements are necessarily material to investors or required to be disclosed in our filings with the SEC. In addition, historical, current, and forward-looking environmental, social and sustainability-related statements may be based on standards for measuring progress that are still developing, internal controls and processes that continue to evolve, and assumptions that are subject to change in the future.

PART I.