Financial Information Related To Guarantor Subsidiaries (Narrative) (Details) (USD $) In Millions, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2012	Feb. 07, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2012 Unsecured Senior Notes Due 2019 [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Unsecured Senior Notes Due 2019 [Member] Parent [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Unsecured Senior Notes Due 2021 [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Unsecured Senior Notes Due 2021 [Member] Parent [Member]	Jun. 30, 2012 Unsecured Senior Notes Due 2021 [Member] Parent [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 SESI LLC [Member] Parent [Member]
Condensed Financial Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Wholly owned subsidiary of Parent company									100.00%
Unsecured senior notes, issued					$ 500		$ 800
Stated interest rate on unsecured senior notes		8.00%		6.375%	6.375%	7.125%		7.125%
Common stock, par value	$ 0.001		$ 0.001
Preferred stock, par value	$ 0.01		$ 0.01