Fresh multimillion-dollar gigs take TechnipFMC to Petrobras’ oil fields in Brazilian waters

UK-headquartered energy technology provider TechnipFMC has landed two new subsea assignments with Brazil’s state-owned energy giant Petrobras, allowing it to work on three offshore oil fields in the Brazilian pre-salt area.

TechnipFMC describes its first award as a substantial contract, enabling between $250 million and $500 million to be included in inbound orders in the third quarter of 2024, for the design, engineering, and manufacturing of riser flexible pipe and the supply of associated services, including packing and storage.

The UK player has presented its second award, which followed a competitive tender, as a significant contract, bringing between $75 million and $250 million in inbound orders, to design, engineer, and manufacture subsea production systems for deployment on the Atapu 2, Sepia 2, and Roncador projects.

In addition, the deal entails installation support and life-of-field services, alongside the option for additional equipment and services. TechnipFMC claims that all equipment and products will be manufactured and serviced locally, leveraging core capabilities in Brazil that make the continued development of pre-salt reserves possible.

Jonathan Landes, President of Subsea at TechnipFMC, commented: “These awards underscore our leadership position in flexible pipe technology, and the proven success of our standardized equipment platform that was effectively deployed for Petrobras on the Buzios 6-9 fields. 

“Our nearly 70-year legacy in Brazil reflects our deep commitment to the region and highlights our continuing support of Petrobras’s strategic vision. We will draw on our extensive in-country operations to deliver on these contracts.”

The deal with TechnipFMC comes weeks after Petrobras hired OneSubsea to deliver pre-salt subsea production systems and related services for the second development of the Atapu and Sepia oil fields in the strategically important Santos Basin. The Brazilian giant and its partners in the Atapu and Sépia consortiums made the final investment decision (FID) for the second development phase of these fields at the end of May 2024.

The projects will enrich Brazil’s floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessels’ pool with two new all-electric FPSOs, P-84 (Atapu) and P-85 (Sepia), being built by Seatrium, thanks to an $8.16-billion contract. These FPSOs are expected to start their jobs in 2029.

While the Atapu field has been producing since 2020 through the FPSO P-70, with a production capacity of 150,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd), the second development phase, Atapu-2, will comprise a new-built FPSO of 225,000 bopd capacity. Petrobras owns an interest of 65.7% in the Atapu field, in partnership with TotalEnergies (15%), Shell (16.7%), Petrogal (1.7%), and PPSA (0.9%).

The Sépia field, which has been producing since 2021 through the FPSO Carioca with a production capacity of 180,000 bopd, is also getting its second development phase, Sépia-2, which will comprise a new-built FPSO of 225,000 bopd capacity. The Brazilian heavyweight has an interest of 55.3% in the Sépia field, in partnership with TotalEnergies, (16.9%), Petronas (12.7%), QatarEnergy (12.7%), and Petrogal (2.4%).

On the other hand, Petrobras, as the operator with a 75% equity in the Roncador field, started production from the first two wells of the increased oil recovery (IOR) project in April 2022. This field is considered to be Brazil’s fifth largest producing asset and has been in production since 1999. The Brazilian energy giant’s partner is Equinor, which has held a 25% equity since 2018. The FPSO P62 works at the Roncador field.

These projects show Petrobras’ determination to continue its hydrocarbon growth story in Brazil and elsewhere as confirmed within its strategic plan for 2024-28. Following the start-up of Mero-2 in late 2023, more oil and gas projects are in the Brazilian giant’s pipeline, including the start-ups of Mero-3 in 2024 and Mero-4 in 2025.

Meanwhile, TechnipFMC recently completed its work for ExxonMobil at a gas-to-energy (GtE) project off Guyana’s Atlantic coast. The project aims to enable infrastructure buildout for natural gas transport from an oil field in the Stabroek Block to an integrated natural gas liquid (NGL) plant and a 300 MW combined cycle power plant at Wales on the West Bank of Demerara.

The development plan outlines that an ExxonMobil-led consortium is in charge of constructing a 12-inch diameter pipeline network and footing the bill of around $1 billion to connect the pipeline to the Liza Phase 1 and 2 projects in Guyana’s ultra-deep waters.

After the gas-to-energy project suffered a six-month setback, the total cost estimate rose from $1.7 billion to about $1.9 billion, with the first gas bumped to 2025.