Petrobras is sticking with its plans to expand oil production, along with other international oil majors including Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and Shell Plc, despite a decline in crude prices during April and a decision by OPEC+ to crank up output in June. Unlike US shale operators who need more than $60 a barrel to cover costs, Petrobras’s breakeven price is $28 a barrel.
Subsea7 has won a competitive tender and secured a “super-major” contract from Petrobras for the development of the Buzios 11 offshore field in Brazil, Subsea7 announced on Friday.
Under the terms of the engagement, Subsea7 will provide engineering, procurement, fabrication, installation and pre-commissioning of 112 kilometres of rigid risers and flowlines. The value of the business was not disclosed, but Subsea7 defines “super-major” contracts as being worth more than USD 1.25 billion.
Petrobras attributed the overall quarterly increase in oil and gas production to lower losses resulting from maintenance-related suspensions of operations, improved efficiency at fields in the Santos Basin, the addition of a new floating production, storage, and offloading vessel at the Buzios field, and the ramp up at another FPSO at the Mero field.
Brazil will offer 172 oil blocks that span areas on land to deep-water regions in northeastern and southern Brazil under concession contracts. A total of 47 are at the Foz do Amazonas, where Petrobras is appealing to drill its first well after having its exploration campaign blocked in 2023. Brazil’s Mines and Energy Ministry says that basin could contain oil fields similar to those discovered in Suriname and Guyana, where Exxon Mobil Corp. found billions of barrels.
Brazil’s state-controlled oil producer Petroleo Brasileiro SA said it has finished building a wildlife rescue center, marking a step toward its first exploratory well in a promising yet contentious region offshore the country’s Northern state.
Baker Hughes announced Thursday a major, multi-year fully integrated completions systems contract with Petrobras. The award followed an open tender and will leverage Baker Hughes’ innovative completions technology portfolio and extensive experience in Brazil to optimize production across multiple deepwater fields.
“Baker Hughes has led the way in addressing SCC-CO2, and we will bring that expertise and experience to bear in developing the definitive solution to this critical industry challenge”, Amerino Gatti, executive vice president for Oilfield Services and Equipment at Baker Hughes, said. “By deploying flexible pipe systems that last for decades, Petrobras can more efficiently unlock the vital natural resources that power the region, while also safely returning CO2 deep underground”.
Petrobras announced 9.1 billion reais ($1.6 billion) in dividends on Wednesday that trailed estimates after a surprise loss in the fourth quarter.
SBM Offshore is developing a compact, modular carbon capture solution designed to significantly reduce emissions from oil and gas production on FPSOs, as part of its emissionZERO program. The study for Petrobras encompasses the design and commercial assessment of diverse carbon capture system configurations for future FPSOs deployed in Petrobras fields, considering varying turbine types and machinery setups, gas flow rates and installed gas turbine power, and CO2 concentrations and gas compositions, SBM Offshore said.
State-owned energy company Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) completed its first sale of very low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO) with 24 percent renewable content in the Asian bunker market. The company said in a media release that it sold the VLSFO with Golden Island, a licensed bunker supplier in Singapore, noting that the sale was made in early February, for delivery before the end of the month.