Petrobras breaks production record for its 70th birthday

Brazilian state-owned oil and gas giant Petrobras has broken its quarterly record of operated oil and gas production in the third quarter of this year, reaching 3.98 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day, 7.8% above the previous quarter.

Petrobras also reported that it had reached a monthly record of operated production in September, with a volume of 4.1 million boe, 6.8% higher than the August volume.

The company said that the result was mainly due to the production increase of the Almirante Barroso platform, which operates in the Búzios field, and the P-71 platform, in the Itapu field – both in the Santos Basin pre-salt – and the Anna Nery and Anita Garibaldi units, in the Marlim and Voador fields – which operate in the Campos Basin.

Another relevant factor was the lower number of maintenance stops in the platforms during this period, the Brazilian giant stated, adding that this record in monthly operated production was also accompanied by a monthly record in operated production in the pre-salt in September when the mark of 3.43 million boe was reached in this layer.

Petrobras also achieved an accumulated production of more than 27 billion boe in the third quarter. Of this total, two-thirds were produced in the last 20 years, said to be due to the significant progress in the development of ultra-deepwater fields.

“In the year that Petrobras turns 70, we have many reasons to celebrate. We broke our quarterly and monthly records in operated production and our results show the high productivity of the pre-salt, this giant that amasses exceptional results. In addition, since December last year, we have already put four new production platforms in operation,” said Petrobras CEO Jean Paul Prates.

With FPSO Sepetiba in the Mero field starting production at the end of the year, Petrobras will have deployed five platforms within a period of 12 months. The five projects are set to add 630 thousand barrels to the company’s oil production capacity.

“Our production began in 1953, with only 3 thousand barrels per day, and now we produce more than a thousand times that volume. And we will continue to contribute to the country’s growth. Petrobras will deploy half of all the FPSOs in the world in the next few years, always focusing on our commitment to safety, diversity and sustainability,” Prates added.

In terms of other recent news, Petrobras announced at the beginning of this month that it was planning to kick off a drilling program in the Potiguar Basin on Brazil’s Equatorial Margin upon the arrival of a rig.

The Brazilian company highlights that this region is considered to be “one of the world’s newest and most promising frontiers” in deep and ultra-deep waters.