Norwegian offshore engineering firm Aker Solutions has said it has won a "substantial" contract with Petrobras to provide a subsea production system and related services for the Mero 4 project, offshore Brazil.
Aker Solutions defines a substantial contract as being between NOK 700 million (around $79,98 million) and NOK 1.2 billion (around $137,1 million)
This is the fourth consecutive production system for the Mero field development, one of the largest oil discoveries in Brazil's pre-salt area, Aker Solutions said.
The subsea production system will consist of up to 13 vertical subsea trees designed for Brazil's pre-salt, including subsea distribution units, subsea control modules, and master control station for control systems and topside, and related tie-in equipment.
"Aker Solutions' subsea manufacturing facility in São José dos Pinhais, and its subsea services base in Rio das Ostras, will carry out the main part of the work. The work starts immediately, with installation scheduled to take place between 2023 and 2025," the company said.
FPSO
Back in August, Dutch FPSO leasing specialist SBM Offshore said it has signed a letter of intent with Petrobras to lease and operate a newbuild FPSO at the Mero field in the Santos Basin offshore Brazil for the Mero 4 project. SBM did not disclose the financial details of the 22.5-year lease and operate contracts.
The FPSO, to be named Alexandre de Gusmão, will be designed and constructed using SBM's Fast4Ward program incorporating the company’s new build Multi-Purpose Floater (MPF) hull combined with several standardized topsides modules. SBM Offshore’s fifth MPF hull has been allocated to this project. Completion of the FPSO is expected in 2024.
SBM said the FPSO would be designed to produce 180,000 barrels of oil per day and treat 12 million standard cubic meters of gas per day. Furthermore, the unit will have a water injection capacity of 250,000 barrels per day and a minimum storage capacity of 1.4 million barrels of crude oil. The unit will be spread moored in approximately 1,900 meters water depth, approximately 160 kilometers from Arraial do Cabo, Rio de Janeiro state.
The Mero 4 FPSO hull construction achieved the first steel cutting milestone in the third quarter of 2021. The FPSO construction is progressing as per plan with the expected first oil in 2025, SBM Offshore said earlier this month.
The Libra block, where the Mero field is located, is under a Production Sharing Agreement to a Consortium comprised of Petrobras with 40%, Shell Brasil with 20%, Total Energies with 20%, CNODC and CNOOC with 10% each and the state-owned company Pré-Sal Petróleo SA as manager of the Production Sharing Contract.