Oil production in sharing contracts recorded in 2022 resulted in almost four times greater than in 2021. Last year, 233 million barrels of oil were produced by seven contracts, against 62 million barrels in 2021.
The information was released this Thursday (23) and is included in the Monthly Production Bulletin prepared by Pré-Sal Petróleo (PPSA). Created in 2013, PPSA operates in the management of production sharing contracts, and represents the Union in agreements for the individualization of production and management of the sale of oil and natural gas.
Since the beginning of the historical series of the production sharing regime, in 2017, the accumulated production reached 343.11 million barrels of oil. Of the total produced, 9.8 million barrels were destined for the Union.
Production under this regime started at the end of 2017 in the Mero Development Area and, since then, has maintained a fast pace of growth. Peak production is expected to occur in 2030, according to a PPSA study.
The main producers in 2022 were the Búzios and Mero fields, with 152 million barrels of oil and 34 million barrels of oil, respectively. Together, the fields accounted for 80% of production.
When analyzing the Union’s share, the two fields were also the ones that contributed the most, accounting for 74% of production. The Union’s natural oil volumes are marketed by PPSA as cargo becomes available. In 2022, R$ 4.71 billion were raised for the National Treasury.
Natural gas production also had a significant result last year, making 602 million cubic meters (m³) available for sale, surpassing by more than three times the 187 million m³ obtained in 2021.
Campo de Búzios was the main producer, being responsible for the production of 528 million m³. The Union had 48 million m³. More than 80% of the Union’s natural gas comes from the Entorno do Sapinhoá contract. Since 2017, accumulated production has amounted to 990 million m³ of natural gas for commercial use.
December
The PPSA monthly bulletin reveals that, in December, the average production of the seven contracts reached 761 thousand barrels of oil per day (bpd), a result 4% lower than in the previous month. 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 21st, at the Itapu field, in the Santos Basin pre-salt layer, 200 kilometers (km) off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, with the platform vessel P-71. Average production was 8,000 barrels of oil per day.
The daily average of Union oil reached, in December 2022, 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, of which 1.7 million m³/day in Búzios, 154 thousand m³/day in Entorno de Sapinhoá and 25 thousand m³/day in the Southwest of Green Turtle. The result is 12% higher than that registered in November, due to the improvement in operational performance in the Búzios fields, shows the bulletin.
The Union was entitled to an average production of 127,000 m³/day, an increase of 34% compared to November. Most of it came from the surrounding area of Sapinhoá (101,000 m³/day), followed by Búzios (25,000 m³/day) and Sudoeste de Tartaruga Verde (300 m³/day).
