The Guanabara floating production storage and offloading unit (FPSO) has been designed to process up to 180,000 barrels of oil per day and 12 million cubic metres of gas per day. The platform has an oil storage capacity of 1.4 million barrels.
Constructed and operated by Modec, FPSO Guanabara reached the Mero field in late January 2022. Following this, it was connected to wells and subsea equipment and then went through final tests before starting production.
According to Petrobras, 6 producing wells and 7 injectors will be connected to the FPSO during the first wave. The production platform is anticipated to achieve peak production by the end of this year, said the Brazilian firm.
Shell upstream director Zoe Yujnovich said: “Today’s announcement serves as the latest reminder of the strength of our position in Deep Water in Brazil with world-class assets, a prolific basin and a robust portfolio.”
The Mero field is located 150km (93 miles) off the coast of Rio de Janeiro and in a water depth of up to 1,930 metres (1.2 miles). The offshore Brazilian field will get three more FPSOs between 2023 and 2025.
Global oil consumption in 2019 (pre-Covid) was 97.6 million barrels per day.