Offshore staff
RIO DE JANEIRO – Petrobras and its partners have committed to the third development phase of the Mero project in the Libra block in Brazil’s presalt Santos basin.
The company has signed a letter of intent with Malaysian contractor MISC Berhad for the charter and services for the FPSO Marechal Duque de Caxias for the Mero field, thought to hold up to 4 Bbbl of recoverable oil.
The Mero 3 FPSO will have a processing capacity of 180,000 b/d and 12 MMcm/d of gas, with the charter and service agreements running for 22.5 years from final acceptance of the vessel, during the first half of 2024.
Development will involve the tieback to the FPSO of eight producer and seven water and gas injector wells via rigid production and injection flowlines, flexible service flowlines and control umbilicals.
In addition, the Libra consortium plans a pilot test in the Mero 3 area of Petrobras’ HISEP – High Pressure Separation – technology. This involves subsea separation and reinjection, via centrifugal pumps, of much of the carbon dioxide produced with the oil, easing the strain on the FPSO’s oil processing plant and allowing oil production to increase.
HISEP is currently undergoing definition and testing. After qualification, Petrobras added, a pilot can be installed in Mero 3 to perform longer-term tests and to assess the technology.
Mero, 180 km (112 mi) offshore Rio de Janeiro, is said to be Brazil’s third largest presalt discovery and has been undergoing test production since 2017 through the 50,000-b/d FPSO Pioneiro de Libra. Other partners in the Libra blocks are Shell, Total, CNOOC, and Pré-Sal Petróleo S.A., which serves as manager of the agreement.
According to Total, the Mero 1 FPSO is due to start operating in 2021 and Mero 2 in 2023. Both vessels also will have a liquid processing capacity of 180,000 b/d.
Arnaud Breuillac, president Exploration & Production, added that his company was now targeting production of 150,000 b/d in Brazil by 2025.
08/17/2020
