To transport pre-salt gas, Petrobras and 3 other oil companies sign a contract to share the Route 1, 2 and 3 gas pipelines

Petrobras signs a partnership with Petrogal, Repsol and Shell to share pre-salt offshore gas pipeline infrastructure and promises to make the natural gas market in Brazil more competitive

An important step towards opening up the gas market in Brazil could take place this Wednesday (30). Petrobras announced that it will sign an agreement to formalize a milestone in the construction of a more competitive sector: the sharing of infrastructure for the flow and processing of natural gas in offshore pre-salt gas pipelines.

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In a webinar to be held later today (30), the state will sign contracts with Petrogal Brasil, Repsol Sinopec Brasil and Shell Brasil, companies that own offshore gas pipelines in the Santos Basin pre-salt. The virtual event will be attended by the president of Petrobras, Roberto Castello Branco, as well as executives from Shell, Repsol and Galp Energia.

“The flow and processing agreements will be a milestone in opening up the natural gas market in Brazil. They demonstrate the commitment of all partners to contribute to the development of a competitive and sustainable market in the country”, said Petrobras CEO Roberto Castello Branco.

With the completion of these contracts, the oil companies will be able to dispose of the gas produced in the pre-salt offshore fields of the Santos Basin through any of the export routes and carry out its proper treatment in Petrobras' processing plants.

Contracts include integrated systems for pre-salt natural gas

According to Petrobras, the contracts will make it possible to include the Integrated Natural Gas Flow System (SIE), which will enable the physical interconnection and sharing of flow capacities on routes 1, 2 and 3, and the Integrated Natural Gas Processing System (SIP), which will allow companies to access Petrobras' processing units in Caraguatatuba (SP), Cabiúnas and Itaboraí (RJ).

The combination of the SIE and SIP systems is another fundamental milestone for companies to be able to sell their volumes of natural gas from pre-salt offshore assets directly to their customers, according to Petrobras.

In compliance with the commitments assumed with the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) in July 2019, this decision is part of a series of measures to make the diversification of agents viable, which may result in increased competition and a reduction in the participation of the Petrobras in the natural gas chain in Brazil.