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Several new operators are appearing in the Espírito Santo basin as Petrobras' sales of onshore and shallow water assets progress.
The state of Espírito Santo has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of Petrobras' divestment plans. The expectation is that the arrival of new companies will generate jobs and income in the region. Last Thursday (27), Petrobras signed a US$ 155 million agreement with Karavan SPE Cricaré, a partnership between Karavan and Seacrest, for participation in 27 E&P areas located in the onshore area of the Espírito Santo basin.
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These fields had an average production of 1.700b/d (barrels per day) of oil and 14.000m3/d (cubic meters per day) of natural gas in the first half of the year. The expectation is that the new operator will take advantage of exploration opportunities in the fields to increase production. The sale is part of Petrobras' $20-30 billion asset sale program for 2020-24.
Last week, Petrobras had also announced the start of sales processes for the onshore fields Cancã, Cancã Leste, Fazenda Alegre, Fazenda São Rafael and Fazenda Santa Luzia and associated infrastructure in the same basin.
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NOC is also selling its stakes in two onshore exploration blocks (ES-T-506 and ES-T-516) as well as six offshore blocks (ES-M-596, ES-M-598, ES-M-671 , ES-M-673, ES-M-743 and BM-ES-23, where the deep water discoveries of Parque dos Doces took place) and the Camarupim, Camarupim Norte, Canapu and Golfinho fields, all in the Espírito Santo basin .
Last year, the independent Imetame also signed an agreement with Petrobras for the purchase of onshore fields in ES Lagoa Parda, Lagoa Parda Norte and Lagoa Piabanha.
The region's appeal is due not only to its proximity to the largest and most productive basins in Brazil, Campos and Santos, but also to the infrastructure installed in Espírito Santo.
The state has a natural gas processing unit, the Cacimbas plant, with a capacity of 18,1Mm3/d. It started operating in 2008 and already receives gas from offshore fields in the Espírito Santo basin. Shipyards are also installed in the state, such as Jurong Aracruz, which was responsible for the work on several platforms that are currently producing in the pre-salt region.
According to ANP data, the Espírito Santo basin currently has 21 blocks in the exploration phase, 11 onshore and 10 offshore. Maritime concessions are operated by large companies such as Equinor, Repsol and CNOOC from China. The latter two acquired the blocks in 2017, during the 14th round of concessions, and are still in the initial exploration phase, so the basin will have even more activity in the coming years.
Petrobras maintains focus on pre-salt and sale of onshore fields and shallow waters of the state-owned company in the Espírito Santo Basin stimulates new activities
Petrobras shifted its focus away from the area in 2015, when an explosion aboard the FPSO Cidade de São Mateus killed nine people. The unit was responsible for production in the Camarupim and Camarupim Norte fields, where production is at a standstill.
The expectation is that the arrival of new companies in the region, both onshore and offshore, will reverse the retraction of activities, with new wells being drilled and more data acquisition in progress.
At the end of 2019, the ES basin had 43,1Mb (million barrels) of oil and 9Bm3 (billion cubic meters) of gas in proven, probable and possible (3P) offshore reserves, in addition to 49,2Mb of oil and 227Mm3 of gas from 3P onshore reserves.
Source: Bnamericas
