Yinson gets a hold of $230 million in funding for Brazil-bound FPSO

Yinson Production, a subsidiary of Kuala Lumpur-based energy infrastructure and technology company Yinson Holdings, has secured a $230 million term loan facility in relation to an FPSO vessel under construction, which will be deployed off the coast of Brazil.

This financing is for the FPSO Maria Quitéria, which will be deployed at the Parque das Baleias integrated project, located at the Petrobras-operated Jubarte field in the northern Campos Basin, around 80 kilometres off the coast of Anchieta, Espírito Santo, Brazil. The field lies at a water depth of approximately 1,300 metres and it was discovered in 2001. The Parque das Baleias area is formed by the Jubarte, Baleia Anã, Cachalote, Caxaréu, Pirambú, and Mangangá fields.

The $230 million loan facility, which Yinson obtained, was structured and arranged by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), an independent infrastructure fund manager with approximately $100 billion in assets under management. This marks the first transaction between Yinson Production and GIP. It is also GIP’s first financing of a floating, production, storage, and offloading vessel.

Commenting on the closing of this loan facility, Markus Wenker, Yinson Production Chief Financial Officer, remarked: “We are very pleased to have completed this transaction and thank GIP and its partners for their trust in us. This transaction showcases the strength of Yinson Production in attracting highly sophisticated capital and its ability to broaden its funding base beyond Asia.

“We are excited to continue building upon this partnership and further growing our network of lenders and investors globally to pivot to new opportunities in the FPSO market and create value for our shareholders.”

Yinson Production was awarded the supply, operation, and maintenance of the FPSO Maria Quitéria by Petrobras in February 2022. At the time, the deal represented Yinson’s second project award with Petrobras and its third project award in Brazil, in line with the group’s plans to expand its presence in the country.

The Malaysian player explains that the construction of the FPSO is nearing 70 per cent completion as of June 2023, which is in line with the project schedule, thus, the FPSO is on track to achieve first oil in the second half of 2024. The FPSO Maria Quitéria has a production capacity of 100,000 barrels of oil and five million Sm³ of gas per day. 

According to Yinson, the $230 million loan facility demonstrates the attractiveness and robust investment outlook of the FPSO industry within the global energy infrastructure market, as well as Yinson Production as “a leading independent owner and operator of FPSOs worldwide.” GIP was joined in funding the loan by other investors, including Gramercy Funds Management.

Jon Plavnick, GIP Credit Managing Director, stated: “We are proud to partner with Yinson Production in connection with this financing for FPSO Maria Quitéria. This transaction highlights GIP Credit’s ability to provide a reliable and flexible capital solution for FPSO Maria Quitéria during both its conversion process in Shanghai and its eventual time charter operations in Brazil.

“We believe this investment further demonstrates GIP’s ability to provide customised capital solutions to top-tier infrastructure companies globally.”

Recently, Yinson expanded its Brazil-bound FPSO fleet by acquiring an FPSO destined for work at Enauta’s oil field off Brazil. This FPSO is anticipated to be fully operational by mid-2024 with six production wells.