On Monday (04/15), the Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira, ordered the creation of a Working Group (GT) to monitor oil prices in light of the conflict in the Middle East. Represented by the Strategic Planning Advisor, Leandra Ribeiro, and the Coordinator of Oil and Natural Gas Commercialization, Nilo Carvalho, PPSA will be part of the monitoring team. The group includes technicians from the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas, and Biofuels (ANP), and the Energy Research Company (EPE). In addition to these participants, representatives from the private sector will also be invited.

The Minister emphasizes the importance of closely monitoring commodity prices, given the impact of oil on fuel prices, industrial activity, and inflation rates across the global economy. “We are vigilant on this matter, and that is why I have ordered the creation of a working group to monitor the fluctuation of Brent oil prices, so that we can act using the mechanisms we already have available, always respecting the governance of companies operating in Brazil,” pointed out Alexandre Silveira.

The group will produce daily reports on oil prices, both in dollars (the currency in which the product is traded) and in reais. The measure aims to provide a diagnosis tailored to the Brazilian reality, which is influenced both by the fluctuation of barrel prices and by the U.S. dollar. According to the Ministry of Mines and Energy, the publication of the ordinance establishing the Working Group (GT) in the Official Federal Gazette (DOU) will take place in the coming days.

This year, Pré-Sal Petróleo (PPSA) completes, in November, ten years of existence and is proud to have a history full of achievements, which deserves to be celebrated. Since its foundation, the company has had numerous achievements and excellent results in collections for the National Treasury.

For such reason, a commemorative stamp has been created with the purpose of valuing the company entire trajectory of evolution. It is composed of lines that represent the path taken so far, but the lines do not meet, referring to an idea of continuity.

The seal starts to be used from now until the end of the year. The ten-year milestone will be celebrated at the 6th Pré-salt Petroleum Technical Forum, to be held in November, on a date yet to be determined.

Pre-Sal Petróleo (PPSA) published, on Friday (5th), the Annual Letter of Public Policies and Corporate Governance and the Annual Management Report, both for 2022. Later this month, the 2022 Integrated Report will be published.

The Annual Letter is a report on the company activities, its governance practices, public commitment, risk controls and economic-financial data. The Annual Report also brings consolidated information on the work carried out throughout the year and provides the financial statements, previously published in the Official Gazette.

The year 2022 was marked by excellent results. Oil production under the production sharing regime was almost four times the production of 2021 and, at the end of the year, the company accounted for a record collection of BRL 4.71 billion for the National Treasury with the sale of the oil and gas portion native of the Union, 285% more than in the previous year.

The company managed 19 production sharing contracts, against 17 in 2021 and is preparing to receive another four contracts this year, as a result of the 1st Cycle of Permanent Production Sharing Offer. For the coming years, the outlook is for growth. According to a study presented at the company annual Technical Forum, from 2023 to 2032, the contracts will have an accumulated production of 7.7 billion barrels of oil. Of this total, the Union will have accumulated 1.9 billion barrels of oil.

Check this and other information about the company in the following documents:

Annual Letter on Public Policy and Corporate Governance

Annual Management Report 

Pré-Sal Petróleo (PPSA) was present at the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC), in Houston (USA), during the first week of May. Production monitoring and control coordinator Carlos Terêncio Bomfim Silva presented the work “The development of an independent integrated riser”, which was part of the technical session on Advances in the analysis and design of risers, umbilicals and power cables.

The session discussed the development of a project and analysis of offshore structures and was attended by other representatives of companies in the oil and gas industry.

The Well Engineering coordinator, Eduardo Ponce, and the Project and Contract Management coordinator, Cláudio Kuyven were also at the event.

The Offshore Technology Conference is the world’s largest offshore industry event. The fair was held from May 1st to the 4th, in Texas, Houston (USA). This year’s conference had the theme “delivering the future of offshore energy” and had 45 technical sessions and more than 300 presentations by representatives of several national and foreign oil and gas companies.

Petrobras announced that FPSO Guanabara reached its record monthly production on a pre-salt platform: 179 thousand barrels per day.

It is installed in the Mero oil field, in the Santos Basin pre-salt, and the milestone was reached in February, ten months after the first oil from the unit, with four producing wells in operation.

According to Exploration and Production Director Joelson Mendes, “the achievement of another record, this time just 10 months after the 1st oil from the unit and with 4 producing wells, reinforces the enormous potential of the Mero oil field, and it is a result of the capacity and commitment of our technical staff and our partners to overcome challenges”.

The field is explored under a production sharing regime, under our management.

Pré-Sal Petróleo (PPSA) management is completing four years of operation this April. The period was marked by significant growth for the company. Production sharing contracts managed by PPSA increased from 14 in 2019 to 19 in 2023. The signed Production Individualization Agreements jumped from 7, in 2019, to 10, in 2023 and the accumulated collection increased from BRL 2 billion (2019) to BRL 9.29 billion (2023).

During the past four years, the company has improved its management processes for production sharing contracts, its governance, invested in technology, doubled its number of employees and registered record collections for the Union.

The current management is made up of the Chief Executive Officer, Eduardo Gerk, the Technical Director, Cristiane Formosinho Conde, the Administration, Finance and Marketing Director, Samir Awad and the Contract Management Director, Osmond Coelho Júnior. All with more than 35 years of experience in the oil and gas industry.

Check here a brief document with the main results obtained in the past four years.

By the end of the month, the company will publish the Annual Management Report for 2022, with the main highlights of the year, marked by the record collection of BRL 4.71 billion in the year with the sale of the Union’s share of oil and natural gas in the production sharing contracts. The collection was about four times the amount recorded in 2021 (R$ 1.22 billion). The result reflects the increase in production in production sharing contracts and the situation in the international oil price market. All funds raised by PPSA are directed to the National Treasury.

The measure was deliberated at the first meeting of the committee in 2023 and aims to evaluate mechanisms that prioritize the national supply of petroleum-derived fuels

Pré-Sal Petróleo SA (PPSA) should start carrying out studies on the technical and economic viability of mechanisms to prioritize the national supply of fuels derived from petroleum. The proposal was one of the main deliberations of the first meeting of the National Energy Policy Council (CNPE) of 2023, held this Friday (17/03), at the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), in Brasília.

The CNPE measure is based on Law number 12.304/2010, which allows the PPSA to sign contracts, representing the Union, for refining and processing oil, natural gas and other fluid hydrocarbons, resulting from production sharing contracts. Currently, the oil belonging to the Union is sold in its raw form, at the offshore production unit.

According to the Minister of Mines and Energy (MME), the main objective now is to add value to the Union’s oil through the sale of refined products and also to strengthen the national fuel market. “We want the Union’s oil and natural gas, coming from production sharing contracts, to promote Brazil’s industrialization and guarantee security in the national supply of energy, oil inputs, nitrogen fertilizers and other chemical products, reducing dependence on external, and valuing local content. Our companies need to prioritize domestic supply. That’s what we’re looking for”, highlighted Minister Alexandre Silveira, president of CNPE.

The proposal was supported by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who fully participated in CNPE meeting. He asked for a concentrated effort so that the entire agenda is thought through on the side of social justice and the fight against inequalities. “We must always think carefully about our internal demand, valuing the arrival of investments in our country, guaranteeing employment and income for our population. This is what we need to prioritize and I count on you to honor this commitment”, highlighted the president.

Pre-Sal Petróleo SA (PPSA) will have one hundred and eighty days to carry out studies on the technical and economic viability of mechanisms to prioritize the national supply of fuels derived from petroleum.

Federal government’s share totaled 9.8 million barrels

Oil production in production sharing contracts in 2022 was almost four times higher than that recorded in the previous year. According to information from Pré-Sal Petróleo (PPSA), 233 million barrels of oil were produced by seven contracts, in comparison with 62 million barrels in 2021.  9.8 million barrels of that total amount were destined to the Federal government. Production under this regime started at the end of 2017 in the Mero Development Field back then, and has since maintained an accelerated growth pace. Peak production is expected to occur in 2030, according to a PPSA study.

The Búzios and Mero fields were the main producers in 2022, with 152 million and 34 million barrels of oil, respectively. Together, they accounted for 80% of total production. When the Federal government’s share was analyzed, these two fields were also the ones that contributed the most, accounting for 74% of production.

The production of natural gas also had an expressive result in 2022. 602 million cubic meters (m³) were made available for sale, more than triple of the 187 million m³ made available in 2021. The Búzios field was the main producer, accounting for more than half of the production (528 million m³). The Federal government had 48 million m³. Over 80% of the Union’s natural gas comes from the Entorno de Sapinhoá contract.

All data are part of the Monthly Production Bulletin prepared by PPSA and was released this Thursday, the 23^rd. The Federal government’s natural oil volumes are marketed by PPSA as the cargo becomes available. In 2022, BRL 4.71 billion were raised for the National Treasury.

Main producers:

Production of December 2022

In December, the average daily production of the seven contracts was 761 thousand barrels, a result 4% lower than during the previous period. The three largest producers were the fields of Búzios (49% of the total, with 376 thousand bpd), Mero (187 thousand bpd) and Sépia (104 thousand bpd). The highlight of the month was the start of production, on the 21^st, at the Itapu field, in the pre-salt layer of the Santos Basin, 200 km off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, with the platform vessel P-71. The average production was 8 thousand barrels per day.

The daily average of Federal government oil reached a record value of 41.79 thousand barrels. The highlights were the fields of Mero (28.41 thousand bpd), Búzios (5.31 thousand bpd) and Entorno de Sapinhoá (4.34 thousand bpd).

The production of natural gas for commercial use averaged 1.9 million m³/day, with 1.7 million m³/day coming from Búzios, 154 thousand m³/day from Entorno de Sapinhoá, and 25 thousand m³/day from Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde. The result is 12% higher than the one registered in November 2021, due to the improvement in operational performance in the Búzios fields.

In the same month, the Federal government was entitled to an average production of 127 thousand m³/day, most of which came from Entorno de Sapinhoá (101 thousand m³/day), followed by Búzios (25 thousand m³/day) and Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde (300 m³ /day). The average shows an increase of 34% in comparison to the previous period.

Total average production in production sharing contracts continues to grow. In November 2022, it reached 793 thousand barrels of oil per day (bpd), according to the Monthly Bulletin released by Pré-Sal Petróleo S.A. (PPSA). Currently, six fields are in production: Búzios accounted for 427,000 bpd, followed by Libra (175,000 bpd), Sépia (105,000 bpd), Atapu (78,000 bpd), Entorno de Sapinhoá (5,000 bpd) and Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde (4,000 bpd).

The Union’s average daily oil production in production sharing contracts reached 39.6 thousand barrels per day in November, a stable result in relation to the month of October. Libra accounted for 67% of the Union production, with 26.5 thousand bpd. Next are the contracts for Búzios (6.03 thousand bpd), Entorno de Sapinhoá (3.35 thousand bpd), Sépia (2.23 thousand bpd), Atapu (1.43 thousand bpd) and Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde (50 bpd).

Since 2017, the beginning of the historical series, the accumulated production under the production sharing system up to November totals 319.5 million barrels of oil, of which 20.1 million barrels are entitled to the Union.

Natural gas

The natural gas production for commercial use, in November, averaged 1.7 million m³/day in three contracts, with 1.59 million m³/day coming from Búzios, 100 thousand m³/day from Entorno de Sapinhoá and 26,000 m³/day from Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde. The result is 41% lower than in October, due to operational problems in exports from the Búzios field.

Petrobras informed that the Guanabara platform vessel, installed in the Mero field, in the Bacia de Santos pre-salt, reached its maximum production capacity, with the mark of 180 thousand barrels of oil per day (bpd), after about eight months since the beginning of the unit’s operations. Of the FPSO type (floating oil production, storage and offloading system), Guanabara achieved this result with four producing wells and three gas injectors. It is the first platform in a series of four permanent units scheduled for Mero, each with the capacity to produce up to 180,000 bpd of oil.

This performance is the result of the high productivity per well, the learning curve acceleration and the use of state-of-the-art technologies in the field – such as the so-called loop configuration for the water and gas injection wells and the separation of carbon dioxide (CO2) by membranes. “The result demonstrates a ramp up (evolution) of production at a consistent pace, indicating high productivity in the field and a successful development strategy, within the most rigorous standards of operational safety”, said Petrobras’ Director of Exploration and Production, Fernando Borges.

Reduction of CO2 emissions

The FPSO Guanabara incorporates one of the most robust CO2 Capture, Use and Geological Storage programs, the so-called CCUS, as the Mero field has a 45% content of this gas, enabling the reduction of CO2 emissions.

In addition, the Consortium is developing, for application in the field, the unprecedented underwater separation technology named HISEP® (High Pressure Separation). With this technology, it will be possible to separate, even on the seabed, the gas produced rich in CO2, for reinjection into the reservoir.

The Mero field is home to not only the FPSO Guanabara, but also the FPSO Pioneiro de Libra, which operates the Early Production System (SPA 2), currently producing 50,000 bpd. SPA 2 is dedicated to the evaluation of field production behavior. With both units in operation, the Mero field is currently producing around 230,000 bpd.

Mero: third largest field in the country

In the second half of this year, the Consortium plans to install the second definitive platform in Mero: the FPSO Sepetiba, also with the capacity to produce up to 180,000 bpd. By 2025, the company will put another two units into operation in the field, totaling five systems that, together, will correspond to 770,000 bpd of installed capacity in the country.

Mero is the third largest field in Brazil in terms of volume of oil in place, behind only Tupi and Búzios, also located in the Bacia de Santos pre-salt.

Mero unitized field operations are conducted by the consortium operated by Petrobras (38.6%), in partnership with Shell Brasil Petróleo Ltda (19.3%), TotalEnergies EP Brasil Ltda (19.3%), CNODC Brasil Petróleo e Gás Ltda (9.65%), CNOOC Petroleum Brasil Ltda (9.65%) and Pré-Sal Petróleo SA (PPSA) (3.5%), as representative of the Union in the non-contracted area.