As part of the global Perenco Group, Perenco Brazil brings together the expertise and know-how developed across the global company and utilises this in developing new and exciting offshore developments for Brazil. A key area for oil exploration offshore Brazil is within the Campos Basin, where the first well was drilled as early as 1971. For over 50 years, the field has seen vast exploration, and now, through Perenco Brazil, the company has begun vital production from the Pargo Cluster within the basin, now producing up to 20,000 barrels of oil per day. In delivering such vital oil production for Brazil, Perenco can achieve its central mission to deliver solutions that unlock stranded reserves whilst extending the economic life of the fields it works across. With this mission in mind, Perenco Brazil’s exploration of the Pargo Cluster is vital and looks to deliver valuable oil resources for Brazil.
Check out the article in the magazine below:
Perenco Group currently operates across 14 countries worldwide, and across these locations, the company produces a gross total of 500,000 barrels of oil per day (boepd). In recent years, the company’s development in Brazil has been a key focus, especially following its acquisition of key oil fields from Petrobras in October 2019. However, Perenco Brazil, the Brazilian subsidiary of Perenco Group, has been operating in the country for many years, with the company awarded 5 deep water exploration licences in 2008 following a 9th round of licensing. The exploration block awarded to Perenco is held in partnership between the company and OGX and is located within the Espirito Santo Basin.
Whilst its other licences have been vital for Brazil’s energy development, it is the company’s acquisition of the Pargo Cluster from Petrobras in 2019 that has shaped Perenco’s current developments across Brazil. The Pargo Cluster is held 100% by Perenco and comprises a group of oil fields in the Campos Basin offshore Brazil, including the Pargo, Carapeba and Vermelho fields. The assets upon acquisition were mature developments and would require a revitalisation project to enhance their production. To achieve this, the Pargo Cluster Development Plan was developed and formally approved in 2021. The aim was to revitalise the oil fields across the Pargo Cluster and increase the production from these fields whilst extending their operational life.
One of the central revitalising projects of the Pargo Cluster Development plan was the installation of a Floating Storage and Offloading (FSO) vessel, FSO Pargo. The FSO Pargo project saw the conversion development of a double-hulled vessel, with a 750,000 barrel capacity, that would receive oil from the Pargo platform. The vessel received its first oil from the Pargo Cluster at the end of 2023 and is now anchored by 9 moorings, which connect to a new integrated turret system. The oil is passed through the 2.8km pipeline to connect the FSO with the platform. Currently, the Pargo Cluster produces around 20,000 barrels per day, which is a stark contrast to the production level at 2,800 barrels per day when Perenco took it over in 2019. Today, the development of FSO Pargo forms part of Perenco’s $400 million investment into the Pargo Cluster and provides essential oil production for the country.
Upon the announcement of the first oil delivered to FSO Pargo in December 2023, Yves Postec, General Manager of Perenco Brazil, outlines that “FSO Pargo first oil represents a major landmark for the consolidation of Perenco’s long term strategy for the Pargo Cluster. It will be able Perenco Brazil to structure a new scheme for marketing of Pargo oil, one that reinforces the company’s independent and bold values. This project perfectly illustrated the Group capacity to innovate and execute independently. Perenco is very proud of this important milestone”. As we can see from Postec’s comments, the development of the FSO and the overall development of the Pargo Cluster is a valuable field that is delivering significant results for Brazil. Therefore, with the development of FSO Pargo and the continued revitalisation of the Pargo Cluster, Perenco’s operations in Brazil add to the company’s broader strategy to maximise production and extend the life of the assets within the cluster for many years to come.
However, Perenco has only continued to build on its operation in Brazil, and in April 2024, it acquired the Cherne and Barge oil field concessions. The acquisition deal is between Perenco Brazil and Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) and will see the Cherne and Barge fields and two fixed platforms taken over. The platforms, PCH-1 and PCH-2, are located about 30km from the Pargo Cluster at water depths of 120-140 meters and had previously been hibernated by Petrobas in early 2020 and scheduled for decommissioning. Upon the completion of the transaction this year, Perenco is set to implement a vast redevelopment project for these fields and, in turn, restart production. The Cherne and Barge fields are expected to reach a target production rate of 10,000-15,000 barrels of oil per day, whilst Perenco looks to unlock more than 50 million stock tank barrels (mmstb) of reserves. Once in production, these are hoped to be linked with the FSO Pargo to continue enhancing the oil fields of the Campos Basin via a new export pipeline.
Armel Simondin, Chief Executive Officer at Perenco, outlined, “The acquisition is a new milestone for the Perenco Group in Brazil. Since the takeover of the Pargo assets in 2019 at a rate of 2,800 bopd, we have increased production to over 20,000 bopd and successfully installed our own FSO. Perenco is proud to deploy its know-how to extend the life of these mature fields and grow our footprint in Brazil”. What we can see from Simondin’s comments is that Brazil remains a vital development for the company, and through its constant focus on enhancing existing assets, Perenco can achieve its central mission to unlock and develop existing reserves to extend the economic life of fields by leveraging its solutions and expertise to add value to the industry’s existing mature field challenges.
Across Perenco Brazil’s operations, you can really sense the company’s appetite and capacity to develop the mature assets of the oil industry, in order to maximise production and deliver assets for a much longer life cycle. By investing in mature fields across Brazil, Perenco Brazil has delivered vast oil production for the region and, in turn, delivered the Pargo Cluster as a resource for the future of Brazil’s oil industry. With its vital Pargo Development Plan to the more recent acquisition of further fields across the Campos Basin, Perenco Brazil is aligning itself as a leading energy company on a mission to deliver a fair energy industry that brings together its expertise and innovative global spirit into solutions to enhance Brazil’s energy industry for the future.
Add Comment