Petrobras and its partners have achieved first oil from the mega pre-salt development Libra, the operator announced today (27 November).
Libra is in the ultra-deep waters of the Santos Basin, 180km offshore Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The field is being developed through a phased development starting with the 50,000 bbl capacity Pioneiro de Libra floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit as an early production system (EPS). The FPSO also has capacity for 4 MMcm of associated gas. Petrobras said this is the first Petrobras unit equipped to reinject all the gas produced during the tests.
With an expected one-year term, Petrobras says the goal of this production test is to evaluate the dynamic behavior of the oil reservoir and deepen the knowledge on the characteristics of the deposit. Upon the completion of this first test, the Pioneiro de Libra FPSO will be moved to operate EPSs in other Libra wells. The objective will be to increase the knowledge of the reservoir and also to support the development and optimization of all subsequent production units to be installed in the area. Petrobras notes that 12 wells were drilled in Libra block.
Beyond this early production phase, the Libra development will further continue with the next investment decision for the Libra 1 FPSO with a capacity of 150,000 b/d, says partner Total. In the years ahead, other production units of similar capacity will be invested in so that the field can be developed to its full potential.
The Libra field is operated by Petrobras (40%) as part of the international consortium whose other partners are Total (20%), Shell (20%), CNOOC (10%) and CNPC (10%).
In February 2017, Total and Petrobras signed agreements covering a number of upstream and downstream assets in Brazil, cementing a Strategic Alliance announced in December 2016. Under that deal, Total will hold a 22.5% stake in the Iara concession area in Block BM-S-11 and a 35% stake in and operatorship of Block BM-S-9 in the Lapa field concession, which came on stream in December 2016.
Additionally, technical cooperation between the two companies will be strengthened, particularly through joint appraisal of the exploration potential in promising areas in Brazil and through the development of new technologies, particularly in the deep offshore. The transaction is subject to approvals by the relevant regulatory entities.
Petrobras released this video following Libra's first oil (in Portugese).
Photo from Teekay.
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