Industry majors launch ‘world’s first’ on-demand OBN production plant

SENAI CIMATEC, in partnership with Shell Brasil, Petrobras, and Sonardyne, has inaugurated the world’s first production plant for on-demand ocean bottom nodes (OD OBN), a seismic technology poised to revolutionize oil reservoir management, particularly in Brazil’s pre-salt region.

Located at SENAI CIMATEC Park in Camaçari, Bahia, this facility is said to represent a milestone in high-resolution 4D seismic acquisition technology.

According to Senai Cimatec, the R$72 million project (approximately $11,8 million), funded by Petrobras and Shell Brasil through the research, development, and innovation (R&D&I) clause of the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP), aims to enhance efficiency and cost-effectiveness in mapping reservoir fluid dynamics using 4D seismic data. 

Performance and functionality tests, including deepwater trials, have already been completed, the company noted. The facility will initially produce 600 nodes for a full-scale pilot test in a pre-salt oil field scheduled for 2025. Later, the plant will be used for the commercial-scale manufacture of seismic nodes.

“The inauguration of this plant is a long-awaited milestone. The OD OBN is an innovative system that uses on-demand ocean-bottom nodes that record seismic data and communicate directly with the FlatFish – the first autonomous underwater vehicle in Brazil, also the result of an investment by Shell Brazil,” said Olivier Wambersie, General Manager of Technology at Shell Brazil. 

“Shell is the private company that invests the most in research and innovation in the country, around R$500 million per year, 30% of which goes to projects for new low-carbon energy sources and 70% to projects aimed at increasing operational efficiency and decarbonizing the Oil and Gas industry. One characteristic of our R&D project portfolio is to integrate an implementation plan from the outset, which allows us to accelerate the delivery of value and advance in the Energy Transition,” 

The facility includes an electronic board assembly line, machining capabilities, metrology, anodizing, node assembly and testing units, and a specialized test tank for acoustic and optical communications, SENAI CIMATEC noted. 

The infrastructure is said to enable the national production of seismic nodes, strengthening Brazil’s industrial capabilities and fostering collaboration among local companies and research institutions.

“For the first time, we are developing, in Brazil, the technology that will allow us to perform seismic monitoring of the Pre-Salt fields. This shows that the development and investment in science and technology, through partnerships between Brazilian companies and research institutions, can generate industrial development in the country,” added Lílian Barreto, executive manager of Petrobras’ Cenpes. 

“It is a commercial product with a higher level of technology, improving our offshore operational efficiency, reflecting lower risk for our employees and decarbonizing our operations.”

According to SEMAI CIMATEC, the OD OBN nodes are sensors capable of capturing seismic waves reflected in subsurface reservoirs. The data, processed through supercomputers, facilitates the optimization of water and gas extraction and reinjection processes to enhance well productivity. 

SENAI CIMATEC’s collaboration with Sonardyne has resulted in nodes capable of operating for up to five years at depths of 3,000 meters, remotely activated and deactivated. Data retrieval is executed using laser technology and autonomous underwater vehicles like FlatFish.

Carlos Henrique Passos, President of the Federation of Industries of the State of Bahia, emphasized the broader industrial potential, stating: “This plant brings many opportunities to Bahia and Brazil, given that the cutting-edge equipment made available will leverage the development of many other industries, in addition to the oil and gas chain.”

In June, the partners kicked off the next phase of the OD OBN development project which aims to provide a versatile, lower-cost, more resilient solution for time-lapse seismic and subsidence monitoring of producing reservoirs.