Norwegian state-owned energy company Equinor and its partners have commenced oil production from the massive Bacalhau field in Brazil’s Santos Basin. The milestone also signifies Equinor’s first pre-salt project in Brazil and one of the largest offshore oil developments in the country.

According to MODEC, Inc., which supplied and operates the floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel Bacalhau, the unit achieved First Oil on 15 October. The vessel was delivered to Equinor Brasil Energia Ltda, a subsidiary of Equinor ASA, as part of the company’s first pre-salt venture in the region.

The Bacalhau field lies within the BM-S-8 and Carcará North blocks in the pre-salt layer of the Santos Basin, roughly 185 kilometres off the coast of Ilhabela, São Paulo. The project partners include ExxonMobil Brasil (40%), Equinor (40%, operator), Petrogal Brasil-a joint venture between Galp and Sinopec (20%), and Pré-sal Petróleo S.A. (PPSA) acting as the production-sharing contract manager.

Bacalhau is regarded as Equinor’s largest international asset, with recoverable reserves exceeding one billion barrels of oil equivalent. The company said the safe start-up marks an important step for its global operations, combining large-scale production capacity with improved cost efficiency and reduced carbon emissions.

The FPSO Bacalhau, designed, supplied, and operated by MODEC, is one of the largest and most advanced production vessels ever delivered to Brazil. It measures about 370 metres long and 64 metres wide, with a production capacity of 220,000 barrels of oil per day and storage for around two million barrels. The vessel is permanently moored at a depth of about 2,050 metres using a spread mooring system supplied by MODEC’s group company, SOFEC, Inc.

The unit is equipped with a gas turbine combined cycle (GTCC) system that helps reduce carbon emissions and features MODEC’s proprietary M350 Hull, which provides enhanced topside capacity, greater storage, and longer service life than traditional VLCC-based FPSOs.

Philippe Mathieu, Equinor’s Executive Vice President for Exploration and Production International, said that Bacalhau will play an important role in helping Equinor reach its goal of generating over US$5 billion in free cash flow from its international operations by 2030. The project is also expected to support Brazil’s economy, creating about 50,000 jobs over its 30-year lifespan.

The Bacalhau field was initially discovered by Petrobras in 2012, and Equinor took over as the operator in 2016. It is the first pre-salt field in Brazil to be developed by an international operator and holds high-quality light oil in a carbonate reservoir.

Phase 1 of the project includes 19 wells, both production and injection, which will be brought online gradually. Drilling began in 2022, backed by an investment of about US$8 billion.

This project is MODEC’s 17th FPSO/FSO delivery in Brazil, the ninth in the country’s pre-salt region, and its first collaboration with Equinor.

Reference: Modec