PetroRio ensures cluster’s life extension by bringing another well on stream

Brazilian oil and gas company PetroRio has started production from another well on the Tubarão Martelo field offshore Brazil, as part of its strategy to revitalise and extend the life of the cluster.

In August last year, PetroRio revealed its plans to take advantage of the connection between the Polvo field and the FPSO OSX-3 to make further investments for the connection of a sixth well – the TBMT-10H well – which might cost between $20 million and $25 million.

PetroRio concluded the tieback between the Polvo and Tubarão Martelo fields in July this year. This made it the first independent company to create a private cluster of mature fields in the Campos Basin region.

The tieback project between the Polvo-A platform and the Bravo FPSO was completed in 11 months and had a $ 45 million capex, which would enable an operational cost reduction of $50 million per year for the company.

The Tubarão Martelo field is located in the south of the Campos Basin, next to the Polvo field (7km away), on the northern coast of the Rio de Janeiro State.

PetroRio reported on the start of production of the TBMT-10H well on Tuesday. The company stated that the initial production was approximately 3,800 barrels of oil per day. This is still in the assessment period.

The well was drilled in 2013. PetroRio announced that it had recently accomplished upper completion, installation and connection to the Bravo FPSO, representing an investment of $17.5 million. The estimated payback period is less than 3 months.

The firm says that the well’s estimated recoverable volume of 3.7 million barrels will be reclassified from proven undeveloped reserves to proved developed producing reserves in the next reserves certification report. This incremental production will also benefit from the royalty rate reduction of 5 per cent, as approved by ANP in July 2021, according to PetroRio’s statement.

Brazil’s National Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANP) granted the company a royalty rate reduction for the Tubarão Martelo field in an effort to incentivise investment in revitalization.

The company assured that the TBMT-10H well’s start of operation is another step in the cluster’s revitalization and life extension. These are fundamental parts of PetroRio’s business strategy.