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Resulting From an Investment of US$ 800 Million, Project Is the First Developed From Scratch by the Company
Starting on September 26, the attention of the oil market will be focused on the 20th Rio Oil&Gas, one of the most important events in the sector worldwide. It is in this setting that PRIO (B3: PRIO3 – formerly PetroRio), the largest independent oil and gas company in Brazil and a pioneer in the recovery and enhancement of the lifespan of mature fields, will present to the public the details of the kickoff for operations in the Wahoo Field, located in the Campos Basin.
With an investment of around US$ 800 million, this is the first project developed from scratch by PRIO, designed to be a subsea tieback to the Frade Field, without a production unit. The company declared the commercial viability of the Wahoo Field in December 2021 and has since been preparing to start drilling activities, scheduled for the second half of 2023. With Wahoo, the company expects to achieve a daily production of 40,000 barrels starting in 2024.
There will be four producing wells and two injectors in Wahoo. Innovative, the project will be executed using a mix of mature technologies that have never been combined in this way in Brazil. This combination will allow extending the production life until 2050, alongside the Frade Field. Wahoo is located 35 km north of Frade, with a water depth of 1,400 m, and has a carbonate reservoir at a depth ranging from five to seven thousand meters.
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“Wahoo opens new frontiers for PRIO, both from an operational and technological perspective, as well as from a market standpoint. Therefore, even considering all our projects to be special, I must say that Wahoo is emblematic for its concept of optimizing existing resources, as the viability of this field will be possible due to the subsea tieback with Frade. Our solution is economically viable, enabling low-cost production with the least possible environmental impact, increasing the company’s daily production while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We are very proud to present the details of this project at this Rio Oil&Gas,” states PRIO’s COO, Francilmar Fernandes.
Frade Field
With the concept ‘Human Energy Generates Energy’, PRIO’s booth at the fair will also promote the work the company has developed in the Frade Field, which is located in the Campos Basin, about 125 km from the city of Cabo Frio and 172 km from the Polvo Field. PRIO became 100% owner of this asset and the associated infrastructure in early 2020.
Currently, the Frade Field produces about 30,000 barrels of oil per day. The revitalization campaign for Frade is halfway through its execution and has been divided into two phases: the first will be completed in October 2022, and the second, which was due to finish in 2025, has been brought forward to early 2023, projecting a production increase for the field of 20%.
Albacora Leste
Another highlight from PRIO at Rio Oil & Gas 2022 will be the Albacora Leste Field, in the Campos Basin, which belonged to Petrobras and was acquired by the company in April of this year. With an investment of US$ 2.2 billion, the acquisition will double PRIO’s size, both in production and in revenue and EBITDA.
With the kickoff of Wahoo, the completion of the revitalization of the Frade Field, and taking over the Albacora Leste field, PRIO will more than double its production in the next three years, increasing from the current 50,000 barrels/day to an estimated 120,000 barrels/day.
About PRIO
PRIO is the largest independent oil and gas company in Brazil, a pioneer in the recovery and extension of the lifespan of producing fields. With its assets located in the Campos Basin, the company seeks operational efficiency through process optimization, the use of new technologies, and innovative solutions aimed at cost reduction, always with the premise of excellence and operational safety. PRIO has been growing through acquisitions. Thanks to consistently positive results, it saw a significant appreciation and became part of the B3 index, the main index of the Brazilian stock exchange, in 2020.
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