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The Contract Signed Between Espírito Santo Gás and Galp Energia, a Portuguese Oil Company, Aims to Generate Natural Gas for Espírito Santo
The Espírito Santo Gas Company (ES Gás) has established a supply contract with Galp Energia, a Portuguese company operating in the petroleum and natural gas products market. This is the first time that the state of Espírito Santo will have a natural gas supplier other than Petrobras. The duration of the contract is ten years, totaling a volume of 912 million m³ of natural gas. The total value of the contract is close to R$ 2 billion.
According to the terms of the contract, there will be 100,000 m³ of natural gas per day in 2023 and 2024, 200,000 m³ of natural gas per day in 2025, and 300,000 m³ of natural gas per day between 2026 and 2032. The agreement with Galp has already been approved by the Espírito Santo Public Services Regulatory Agency (Arsp).
According to the Operations Director of ES Gás, Antonio Fernando César Filho, the agreement with Galp for the supply of natural gas materializes efforts to diversify supply sources. “It is an important action for the natural gas supplying companies in a transitioning market, as it reduces dependence on the main supplier.”
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The company’s president, Heber Resende, also comments on the issue of competition. “When we saw that the market was about to open opportunities for other suppliers to offer natural gas to Espírito Santo, we decided to keep our public call permanently open, in order to identify and take advantage of new supply opportunities. The contract with Galp demonstrates that this decision was wise, as the contracted values are very competitive, which is great news for the people of Espírito Santo.”
At Risk of Explosion, Oil Platform Is Interdicted in Espírito Santo
After an inspection of an oil platform in Espírito Santo, the ANP (National Agency of Petroleum) has interdicted operations on the FPSO Cidade de Vitória. The unit presents several problems, including risks of leaking hazardous gases at rates five times higher than those stipulated in the project and failures in communication systems with the onboard population.
According to the inspection and interdiction bulletin from the ANP, “various situations of imminent serious risk were identified.” In a statement, the agency further declared that the oil platform, if it were operating, could pose risks to the city of Vitória due to “occurrences of containment failures, fires, and serious accidents.”
Oil Platform Interdicted in Espírito Santo with No Date to Resume Operations
The inspection of the platform in the city of Vitória took place between May 30 and June 3 of this year, with an interdiction notice stating that operations could only resume after all requirements established by the ANP were met.
According to information from Petrobras’s website, the city of Vitória in Espírito Santo is located in the Golfinho field, about 50 kilometers off the coast of Espírito Santo, along the coastline between Greater Vitória and Aracruz.
Risks Identified on the Oil Platform in Espírito Santo
Undetected Hazardous Gases: According to the ANP’s interdiction document, about 90% of clouds of hazardous gases are not detected by the system installed on the FPSO Cidade de Vitória, Espírito Santo. It is shown that different gas cloud detection criteria are used on the Espírito Santo platform compared to most oil platforms in the country, and while not against the rules, they result in less safe projects, requiring greater efficiency in primary containment by ensuring integrity, which is not happening.
Gas Leakage: In 2020, it was identified on the Espírito Santo platform that “the actual leak rate is five times greater than expected in the project.” This fact was evidenced during the inspection, which revealed low integrity and severe corrosion in several pipelines. According to official estimates, the frequency of leaks should be one event every 1.2 years; however, in the first six months of 2019, there were 3 leaks resulting in explosions and a jet of fire, caused, according to the document, by lack of maintenance and lack of competence.
Communication System: The inspection on the oil platform also indicated that the system of the Espírito Santo unit is degraded, making it impossible to understand the messages sent after several tests. Some failures were also identified in the amplifiers and in the control room.
The purpose of the alarm and notification system on the ship-platform, according to the inspection, is to minimize the risks of the onboard personnel becoming confused during an incident and taking actions that may put themselves and others at risk.
The resolution of this problem on the Espírito Santo oil platform, according to the document, is one of the conditions for the return of production from the FPSO Cidade de Vitória.
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