FID taken for innovative subsea tech to boost production capacity of Brazilian field

A final investment decision (FID) has been taken to develop an innovative natural gas and CO2 separation and reinjection facility for the Mero field offshore Brazil, developed by the Libra Consortium and operated by Petrobras.

The pilot unit, using a pioneer high-pressure subsea separation technology (HISEP), will separate oil from CO2-rich gas at the bottom of the ocean and reinject the gas directly into the reservoir.

This technology is said to have the potential to reduce the amount of gas sent to the topside FPSO, thus enabling the reduction of GHG emissions intensity while increasing the field production capacity.

The innovation is part of the Libra Consortium’s research and development programs. The HISEP subsea separation pilot unit will be connected to the Marechal Duque de Caxias FPSO in the Mero 3 project, currently under construction.

Last week TechnipFMC reported it had won a “major” integrated engineering, procurement, construction, and installation (iEPCI) contract to deliver the Mero 3 HISEP project.

“TotalEnergies is proud to participate in the development of this new technology in the Mero field. In addition to its benefits in Brazil, it should find applications for other projects within the Company. Such innovation fits with TotalEnergies’ approach to develop its businesses while reducing its emissions and costs, to improve its competitiveness in a sustainable way,” said Namita Shah, President, OneTech at TotalEnergies.

The Mero field produces around 230,000 barrels of oil and 15 million m3 of gas every day. It is a unitized field, operated by Petrobras (38.6%), in partnership with TotalEnergies (19.3%), Shell Brasil (19.3%), CNPC (9.65%), CNOOC (9.65%) and Pré-Sal Petróleo S.A (PPSA) (3.5%).

Mero is the third largest field in Brazil, after Tupi and Búzios, also located in the pre-salt area of the Santos Basin. Petrobras revealed plans in 2023 to put 11 additional FPSO units into operation in the pre-salt layer offshore Brazil by 2027, which are anticipated to boost production, enabling it to reach 2.4 million boe.

Production from the second development phase of the Mero field was just recently kicked off.