Petrobras inks letter of intent with MISC Berhad for Mero 3 FPSO charter

Brazilian oil major Petrobras has signed a letter of intent with Malaysia International Shipping Corporation Berhad (MISC Berhad) for the chartering and provision of an FPSO to be installed at the Mero 3 development offshore Brazil.

Petrobras said that that the FPSO, to be named Marechal Duque de Caxias, will be installed at the Mero field located in the Libra Block in the Santos Basin.

The Mero 3 FPSO will be the third unit
to be installed in the Mero field and will have a processing capacity of
180,000 barrels of oil and 12 million cbm of gas per day. The term of the
charter and service agreements is 22,5 years counting from the final acceptance
of the unit, scheduled for the first half of 2024.

The project foresees the
interconnection of 15 wells to the FPSO, with eight oil producers and seven
water and gas injectors, through a subsea infrastructure composed of rigid
production and injection ducts, flexible service ducts, and control umbilicals.

According to Petrobras, the Libra
consortium intends to carry out a pilot test of the HISEP – High-Pressure
Separation technology developed and patented by Petrobras for the first time in
the Mero 3 area.

The technology consists of subsea
separation and reinjection, through the use of centrifugal pumps, of a large
part of the CO2 produced along with the oil, allowing the oil processing plant
to be relieved in the FPSO and consequently allowing oil production to
increase. Petrobras added that the HISEP is currently being defined and tested.

After qualification, a pilot can be
installed in Mero 3 to perform longer-term tests and evaluate the technology.

The Mero field is the third largest of
the pre-salt and is located in the Libra area, operated by Petrobras which
holds a 40 per cent stake.

Partners in the Mero field are Shell
and Total with 20 per cent each while CNODC and CNOOCC hold ten per cent each. Pré-Sal
Petróleo S.A. is the manager of this agreement.

To remind, Petrobras made an investment decision for the second phase of the Mero project back in June 2019.

It is also worth noting that the partners in the project sanctioned the Mero 3 project on Monday.