Offshore staff
STAVANGER, Norway — Equinor has submitted declarations of commerciality and plans of development to Brazil’s ANP agency for two fields in the ultradeepwater BM-C-33 concession in the Campos Basin.
Equinor (operator) is partnered with Repsol Sinopec Brasil and Petrobras in the consortium.
BM-C-33 is about 200 km offshore Rio de Janeiro in water depths of up to 2,900 m. Former operator Repsol Sinopec (now a partner in the concession) made three presalt discoveries in 2010, with estimated natural gas and oil/condensate recoverable volumes of more than 1 Bboe.
The partners plan to develop two of the fields under the names Raia Manta and Raia Pintada, both of which need to be ratified by the regulator, via a 126,000-boe/d FPSO. This will be capable of processing gas and oil/condensate to meet sales specifications without the need for further onshore processing, a first for any field development in Brazil, Equinor claimed.
The vessel’s gas production capacity will be 16 MMcm/d with average exports of 14 MMcf/d.
Sales gas will be sent through a 200-km offshore pipeline from the FPSO to Cabiúnas, Macaé in Rio de Janeiro State, with the liquids offloaded to shuttle tankers.
The development plans project a low average CO2 intensity over the fields’ lifespan of less than 6 kg/boe, made possible through combined cycle gas turbines on the FPSO—a gas turbine and a steam turbine—exploiting excess heat that would otherwise be lost.
Equinor estimates total investment costs at about $9 billion, and the development and subsequent operation phases should generate up to 50,000 local jobs via contracts in the supply chain.
The facilities should start operating in 2028.
The company operates BM-C-33 with a 35% interest, with Repsol Sinopec Brasil holding 35% and Petrobras 30%.
09.21.2023
