Brazilian FPSO restarts following extended maintenance

Australia’s oil and gas company Karoon Energy has restarted production from assets connected to a floating, production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel offshore Brazil, following maintenance work.

Karoon shut-in Baúna production, including from the Patola field, on 28 March due to a loss of containment incident associated with the high-pressure flare on the FPSO Cidade de Itajaí.

After the FPSO operator, Altera and Ocyan, mobilized a team of specialists to the FPSO to identify the source of the leak and undertake repairs, these were completed on 30 March. However, Karoon extended the shutdown to undertake a full inspection and testing of associated systems, and to bring forward some of the planned July maintenance program.

The Australian company now announced that production from its 100 per cent owned and operated BM-S-40 production license restarted on 9 May following the completion of maintenance works on Train 1 of the two production trains on the Cidade de Itajaí.

Train 2 production restarted on 11 May, following a planned gradual ramp-up of Train 1 and the completion of Train 2 maintenance works.

Production from BM-S-40 is currently said to be above 32,000 bopd from six of seven production wells, including the two Patola wells, with daily rates continuing to ramp up. Karoon is targeting peak rates above 40,000 bopd over the next week, representing flush production after the shut-in.

According to the company, production is then expected to decline to a stabilized rate of approximately 33,000 – 35,000 bopd within a few weeks before entering a more gradual natural decline phase through FY2024 and beyond.

Annual maintenance shutdown is still planned to take place in July, however, the scope and timing are being examined to determine if it can be deferred, given the work that has already taken place.