The Papa-Terra Field That Petrobras Sold in 2022 and Became 3R Petroleum's Biggest Technical Challenge

The Papa-Terra Field That Petrobras Sold in 2022 and Became 3R Petroleum’s Biggest Technical Challenge

Written by Maria Heloisa Barbosa Borges

Published on 25/06/2025 at 10:27

Updated on 28/06/2025 at 22:54

10 people reacted to this.

Understand Why Petrobras Sold the Asset, the Challenges of Heavy Oil, and the Legal Dispute That Became the Biggest Obstacle for the New Owner to Unlock the Field’s Potential

One of the most challenging projects in deep waters in Brazil, the Papa-Terra field, in the Campos Basin, has become the center of a complex technical and legal battle. Sold by Petrobras for over 100 million dollars, the asset was taken over by 3R Petroleum with the promise of revitalizing its production and unlocking a billion-dollar value. The new owner, now part of Brava Energia, struggles to overcome the same difficulties that led the state-owned company to divest the project.

3R’s bet is to apply its business model, focused on mature fields, to breathe new life into Papa-Terra. However, the challenge goes beyond complex geology and heavy oil. A fierce dispute with its partner in the project has become the biggest obstacle, leading to a battle in an international arbitration court that will define the future of this giant field that Petrobras sold.

The Sale of the Giant, Why Did Petrobras Divest the Papa-Terra Field?

Petrobras’ decision to sell the Papa-Terra field is part of a broad restructuring of its portfolio. The state-owned company decided to concentrate its investments and efforts on world-class pre-salt assets, which are more profitable. Fields like Papa-Terra, with a history of production below expectations and complex operations, have become non-essential.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

The Paradox of Papa-Terra, Quality Rock, Hard-to-Extract Oil

The Papa-Terra Field That Petrobras Sold and Became the Biggest Technical Challenge for 3R Petroleum

The great opportunity and, at the same time, the biggest challenge of Papa-Terra reside in its geology. The field has an estimated original oil volume of 2 billion barrels, contained in excellent quality reservoir rocks. The problem lies in the oil itself.

Classified as heavy, with API gravity between 12° and 17°, it is extremely viscous, making extraction difficult. Because of this, the historical recovery factor of the field is only 2%, well below the average of 16% for the Campos Basin. 3R’s thesis is that, with more focus and investment, it is possible to drastically increase this percentage, extracting millions of barrels that were left behind.

The Plan of 3R Petroleum

3R’s strategy for the Papa-Terra field is not based on new discoveries, but on engineering and efficiency. The revitalization plan focuses on two main fronts. The first is to perform interventions on existing wells (workovers), reactivating idle wells and optimizing those already in production.

The second front is a new drilling campaign to access areas of the reservoir that have not yet been drained. For this, 3R relies on the unique infrastructure inherited from the field, especially the P-61 platform, which has its own drilling rig, making interventions easier and cheaper.

The War Behind the Scenes, the Shareholder Dispute That Threatens the Future of the Field

While the technical battle occurs at the bottom of the sea, an even more complex dispute takes place in the courts. 3R Petroleum (now part of Brava Energia) holds 62.5% of the field, but the other 37.5% belongs to its partner, Nova Técnica Energy (NTE). The relationship between the two has deteriorated, and 3R accuses NTE of not paying its share of costs and investments.

Based on this, 3R attempted to take full control of the asset, but NTE countered, denying the accusations and taking the dispute to an international arbitration court in London. In a significant setback for 3R, CADE (Administrative Council for Economic Defense) dismissed its acquisition request in September 2024 due to procedural errors. This legal impasse has become the greatest threat to the project, as it complicates securing funding for the expensive revitalization plan, leaving the future of the Papa-Terra field in limbo.

The Papa-Terra Field That Petrobras Sold in 2022 and Became 3R Petroleum’s Biggest Technical Challenge

Understand Why Petrobras Sold the Asset, the Challenges of Heavy Oil, and the Legal Dispute That Became the Biggest Obstacle for the New Owner to Unlock the Field’s Potential

The Sale of the Giant, Why Did Petrobras Divest the Papa-Terra Field?

The Paradox of Papa-Terra, Quality Rock, Hard-to-Extract Oil

The Plan of 3R Petroleum

The War Behind the Scenes, the Shareholder Dispute That Threatens the Future of the Field

While an average building in London or New York takes three years to be completed, in China a 26-story tower went up in five days with about 100 workers, and the global modular construction market already moves US$ 95 billion per year.

A Chinese factory in Guangdong is assembling a humanoid robot every 30 minutes while Tesla, Figure, and Boston Dynamics still struggle to deliver 10 thousand per year.

Australia installs giant concrete structures on the seabed 800 meters from the shore to create an ocean intake for desalination that will draw in saltwater and produce 30 million liters of drinking water per day.

Secret chamber sealed 4,500 years ago found in the Pyramid of Khufu, and Hawass announces its opening to the world in 2026

A public school student single-handedly created a machine capable of treating water for up to 50 people using only solar energy. It was awarded third place at one of the most important science fairs in the world.

Germany installed vertical solar panels on a lake in Bavaria, and the result broke conventional logic: instead of producing energy at midday peak, the plant generates more early in the morning and in the evening, exactly when families turn on appliances and factories are in full swing.

While communities suffer from water scarcity and the advancing desert, women in Morocco use nets high up in the mountains to trap fog droplets, fill reservoirs, and transport drinking water through more than 10 km of piping.

Thyssenkrupp invests R$ 50 million in a rare factory in Brazil to expand the production of truck suspension systems, serve brands like Scania, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen, and transform São Paulo into a strategic base for automotive exports.

NASA satellite image shows a giant mark left by fires in Georgia, where extreme drought, winds, and remnants of Hurricane Helene helped the fire advance over more than 22,000 hectares in an area visible from space.

Second large cruise ship built in China departs from Shanghai for testing with 937 professionals from 12 countries on board. Adora Flora City is 341 meters long, has 2,130 cabins, and a capacity for over 5,200 passengers.

BRICS Bank prepares to issue bonds in Indian rupees after already operating with South African rands and Chinese yuan, Dilma Rousseff says that issuing in local currency is a crucial matter to ensure the institution’s autonomy in the face of programs financed in dollars.

Federal government activates permanent digital fine mesh that cross-references data from CadÚnico with Receita Federal, CNIS, and eSocial in real-time.

The Papa-Terra Field That Petrobras Sold in 2022 and Became 3R Petroleum’s Biggest Technical Challenge

Understand Why Petrobras Sold the Asset, the Challenges of Heavy Oil, and the Legal Dispute That Became the Biggest Obstacle for the New Owner to Unlock the Field’s Potential

The Sale of the Giant, Why Did Petrobras Divest the Papa-Terra Field?

The Paradox of Papa-Terra, Quality Rock, Hard-to-Extract Oil

The Plan of 3R Petroleum

The War Behind the Scenes, the Shareholder Dispute That Threatens the Future of the Field

While an average building in London or New York takes three years to be completed, in China a 26-story tower went up in five days with about 100 workers, and the global modular construction market already moves US$ 95 billion per year.

A Chinese factory in Guangdong is assembling a humanoid robot every 30 minutes while Tesla, Figure, and Boston Dynamics still struggle to deliver 10 thousand per year.

Australia installs giant concrete structures on the seabed 800 meters from the shore to create an ocean intake for desalination that will draw in saltwater and produce 30 million liters of drinking water per day.

Secret chamber sealed 4,500 years ago found in the Pyramid of Khufu, and Hawass announces its opening to the world in 2026

A public school student single-handedly created a machine capable of treating water for up to 50 people using only solar energy. It was awarded third place at one of the most important science fairs in the world.

Germany installed vertical solar panels on a lake in Bavaria, and the result broke conventional logic: instead of producing energy at midday peak, the plant generates more early in the morning and in the evening, exactly when families turn on appliances and factories are in full swing.

While communities suffer from water scarcity and the advancing desert, women in Morocco use nets high up in the mountains to trap fog droplets, fill reservoirs, and transport drinking water through more than 10 km of piping.

BRICS Bank prepares to issue bonds in Indian rupees after already operating with South African rands and Chinese yuan, Dilma Rousseff says that issuing in local currency is a crucial matter to ensure the institution’s autonomy in the face of programs financed in dollars.

German living in Santa Catarina builds miniature trains by hand, recreates classic locomotives from his childhood in Germany, and transforms nights of work into a memory railway full of details in Pomerode.

The world’s smallest island nation approves a historic change to abandon the name inherited from the colonial period and redefine the identity of an island of just 21 km² that once became wealthy from phosphate and now faces an economic crisis and climate threat in the Pacific.

Young Ethiopian turns trash into fashion with tires, cardboard, and electrical wires, goes viral with videos that look like luxury editorials, and surpasses 5 million followers by catching the attention of artists, photographers, and designers.

Archaeologists find a 164-foot underground tunnel in Jerusalem and are intrigued by the giant structure, full of mysteries and with no clear answer about who built it or what it was used for.

Thyssenkrupp invests R$ 50 million in a rare factory in Brazil to expand the production of truck suspension systems, serve brands like Scania, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen, and transform São Paulo into a strategic base for automotive exports.

NASA satellite image shows a giant mark left by fires in Georgia, where extreme drought, winds, and remnants of Hurricane Helene helped the fire advance over more than 22,000 hectares in an area visible from space.

Second large cruise ship built in China departs from Shanghai for testing with 937 professionals from 12 countries on board. Adora Flora City is 341 meters long, has 2,130 cabins, and a capacity for over 5,200 passengers.

BRICS Bank prepares to issue bonds in Indian rupees after already operating with South African rands and Chinese yuan, Dilma Rousseff says that issuing in local currency is a crucial matter to ensure the institution’s autonomy in the face of programs financed in dollars.

Federal government activates permanent digital fine mesh that cross-references data from CadÚnico with Receita Federal, CNIS, and eSocial in real-time.